Art Drawn By Me! Sorry this update took a while.
Unit 001 speaking: "It will look like this..."
Unit 001 thinking: It will look like this.
Others who are NOT Unit 001 thinking: 'It will look like this.'
Unit 001's mainframe/AI: [It will look like this.]
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Kioku had Unit 001 rest on the bed, just like before. Aizawa, Naomasa, Toshinori, and Dr. Silvan were sitting in the same chairs they had previously as well. The android had been quiet and calm, cooperating as well as he could. But they could tell at a glance that he was scared, if his small trembles and misty, whirling eyes were anything to go by.
"No damage...?" This situation was foreign to him, they were foreign to him, they knew this. It would take a long time to truly rectify the emotional damage those villains instilled in him.
Bakugou and Eri were lucky. If Unit 001's trust was a small island, they had managed to make a bridge from themselves to him. Though it was still fragile, it was there, and it was getting stronger through their efforts and shared experiences.
As for everyone else, they were stuck behind a firm wall of doubt. While the day had proven that they were different from the villains he'd been stuck with, they were still strangers he did not know and could not relate to.
While he'd given these five adults a bit of his trust, it was hardly something to write home about. If Bakugou and Eri were walking on a bridge, they were walking on a rope. That's it. That's all it was.
"Yes, dear. You won't feel a thing." Kioku reassures, "It will be like watching a movie!"
"...What is a "movie"?"
"Oh, dear... Well, we will surely remedy that once this is over!" She announced, determination raging within her. Pampering her children was something Kioku loved doing. Toys, playtime, movies, sleepovers, she was the parent that would spend every free moment she had with her kids.
The fact that Eri and this child didn't have the luxury of doing such simple things... she was going to make it her mission to give them that. They deserved to be children, to have fun, and to be happy. As her grandkids whom she'd adopted in her heart (hoping to make official soon), she was going to give them that.
"Now, sweetheart, I want you to lay down." Unit 001 did, "Yes, dear, just like that! All you have to do is relax. I'm going to put my hands on your head, and these gentlemen here will put one hand on your body. That way, they will be able to enter with us, okay?"
"...Understood."
Gently, and with the little bot's full permission this time, they placed a hand on him. Aizawa opted to hold his hand, Dr. Silvan taking the other. Toshinori and Naomasa each had a hand on his shoulder, all four of them giving the small android silent encouragement this way.
Even as they did this, the frown on his face never left. It would take a lot for him to fully trust other people again. They knew this. Hopefully, they could be the first adults he could trust.
Kioku's eyes began to glow softly, "All you need to do is think. It can be anything at all."
"Understood." And so, he did, and they were transported into the viewing room almost instantly. It was the fastest she'd ever experienced, enough to give her and everyone else mental whiplash.
She forgot that his thinking speed was like a computer on steroids.
The moment they opened their eyes again, shocked gasps could be heard. The world was awash in a sea of white. It was a vast expanse of nothing as far as the eye could see. There wasn't any wind or a sky, but there was 'ground'. Ripples could be seen from the places where they stepped, a thin film of clear water just below their feet.
"It's a lot... different compared to the last time we were here," Toshinori carefully stepped on the ground, watching as the ripples spread and then dispersed into calm.
"His 'Viewing Room' completely changed..." Doctor Silvan said in awe, "Honey, has this ever happened before?"
"There have been many cases where patients come to terms with things that have happened to them and their 'viewing room', or mental space, changes accordingly. But this change is far too drastic! It's like we are in someone else's mind entirely."
It was that different.
"Yeah, last time it was a chaotic mess." Naomasa shuttered at the memory.
Before, Unit 001's mind had been vast darkness that threatened to swallow everything. Storms were created through his vastly negative emotions, and Kioku had described that his 'viewing room' had been like that because of his amnesia coupled with his severe trauma, which they'd seen soon after.
"It was a lot more than just a 'chaotic mess'," Aizawa stated. And that it was. They were forcefully given the boot the last time they were here. He could still remember that oppressive feeling of distrust from AI. They weren't pleased with them being there, at all.
Now though, it seems they were calm. No, that wasn't the right word. Sleeping? Yeah, it was like they were 'at rest' right now. Aizawa had a theory that this could be one of the reasons for the drastic change in scenery.
Each of their gazes landed on Unit 001, who stood at the center of this new space. As they were viewing a memory he too wanted to see, he was there with them. He was still in his small form, even here within his mind. His eyes whirled as he studied his surroundings. Currently, he was dealing with a very familiar situation.
His head tilted to the side, "Where is this? Where are we?"
He was confused.
Kioku facepalmed. In her surprise by the changed mindscape, she forgot to explain what it even was to him! "We are inside your mind, dear," she answered. She gestured to the entire world, "All of this is your mind. In your words, you would say it's your mainframe."
"Oh." They watched as his eyes became comically wide, looking around the place with a sort of wonder. Just as he did, though, the space began to rumble subtly. His emotions were rippling through the air. He was searching for something.
If this is my mainframe in a more physical sense, then where is she?
Only a moment had passed before the emotions changed from worry to elation, the little bot running off to an unknown corner of his mind.
"Wow, he's fast. No wonder you all had a hard time catching him." Naomasa was impressed.
"Technically, we didn't catch him. He came to us instead." Dr. Silvan corrected. "Lord, I'm really feeling my age."
"Yes, you and I both, Doctor." Our resident Small Might clearly wasn't in his prime anymore. After the loss of One-For-All, his stamina took a major hit. The little one was very spry for his size; he had those waddles down to an art. They were all just barely keeping up with him.
"I should have had that extra cup of coffee..." Aizawa grumbled. For some reason, he could feel his list of problem children grow by one.
Kioku, the tallest out of all of them, was loving that he was so energetic. Yes! Feel free to do what you want, sweetheart. Look around, experiment, and ask questions! She would be happy to indulge him in anything he wanted to know.
While exploring his damaged memory to try and fix it up was her main goal, her secondary goal to for him to simply be. Let him get to know himself more. What better way than to look through his own mind? The state of one's mindscape says a lot about one's character and growth.
This clear scenery, though soft and calm, was empty. There wasn't a hobby that he loved or a place he adored. There wasn't a favorite color or a sound he liked. It was just a clear space with an empty sky and reflective ground. When one looked down, all they would see was themselves in a world of nothing.
It was a very lonely place. That was... until the little bot found what he was looking for.
No, who he was looking for.
"Is that..."
"Yeah, I think it is..."
Floating aimlessly in the white space was a round, translucent gathering of particles. There was no color to it, but one could see its outline clearly enough to tell that it held similarities to the little robot. How far that extended couldn't be seen, however, as it was barely there. If they weren't paying close attention, they would have completely missed it.
The adults could feel the relief radiating through the mindscape. Unit 001 gently grabbed onto this being, gathering its particles in his arms. "You are not damaged... AI."
"That's the Young AI?!" Small Might spat a bit of blood in surprise, "weren't they, um, bigger?" He didn't add scarier.
"Yeah, and less..." Naomasa struggled to find the word, before settling with, "cute."
'Before, they were like an impassable mountain. Now, they're an emoji.'
"Despite its appearance now, this is what completely destroyed the viewing last time." Aizawa said, easing out of his own shock, "Kid, why are they like... this?"
Instead of speaking, a message window appeared above the sleeping AI. It was a translucent blue, the words on it a bold, distinctive white. It surprised everyone until they read what it said.
[AI Assistant is placed in Sleep Mode until energy is 15%.]
All of them had the same thoughts at that moment: 'Could her current state be our fault?'
See, after that devastating memory session, they met to discuss what they'd discovered about him and her. The conclusion they came to about AI was that she wasn't just a part of his 'quirk'. She can think and feel for herself and makes it her mission to help him understand and discern his surroundings.
There is a comparison that can be made between Dark Shadow and AI, only AI does not have a body of its own. That didn't matter to Unit 001, though. To him, she wasn't just a quirk or a program either. He didn't know the word that would apply to their relationship, but she was someone he cared for more than anyone else, and the same could be said for her towards him.
Family. They were a true 'two-in-one' deal.
Finding her like this connected a few dots for them. She must have used what little power she had while he was in that coma to force them out. He'd probably have had a lot more energy if she hadn't felt the need to do that. If they hadn't intruded on his mind.
'One worse thing than being scared is being scared while alone.'
They were one of the reasons she was sleeping now. They felt bad. It was likely that he wouldn't have been as scared since AI was the one who could discern who was hostile towards him or not.
He would have had reassurance.
It was at this moment that Dr. Silvan had the urge to thank Eri once again. Without her being her supportive, loveable self, they'd still be looking for this little robot.
'I'll have to get my unofficial granddaughter her favorite apples later. She really helped us out by being that reassurance.'
"Is this you?" Naomasa stared at the blue screen. "It looks like a screen you'd see in a game."
"This is my mainframe." Unit 001 explains, "It supplies me with information in the absence of AI. I do not know what a "game" is." He was firm and to the point, not wanting to waste more time speaking with them than necessary.
"A-ah... I see." Naomasa now felt very awkward. "Sorry."
Unit 001 said nothing. He just concentrated on holding AI, making the grown-up feel even more awkward.
'Making that rope into a bridge was going to be harder than we thought...'
"Ehem." Dr. Silvan decided to ask a different question, "How much energy do you have right now?" They needed more info about his state in order to truly help him. If his guess was correct, he had a feeling the amount he had wasn't much.
[Current Energy Level: 2.2%]
It was just as he thought. "Is this low energy level the reason you're so small right now?"
"Yes." Unit 001 stared down at his body, "When auto-reset ended, my body reverted to this form instinctually to gather the needed energy."
The message on the blue screen changed.
[Energy Reserves are below the minimum level for Passive Mode.]
"How long until you have the energy you need to wake her up?" Aizawa was the one to ask this time. Though his voice was very matter-of-fact, if you listened closely, you could tell he was actually a bit worried about the little thing. So were the others.
[Estimated Time: 4 days, 22 hours, 34 seconds.]
Unit 001 didn't look very happy about the estimate. Then again, who would be happy if one of the only people you trusted entirely was literally comatose for a set time?
"I... miss her."
It was a great comfort that he was able to hold her like this. While he was sure that giving her a hug would not help her wake up, he still felt the need to do so. So here he was, hugging her transparent round body close to him. It was all he could do for now.
"Don't worry sweetie." Kioku assured, "Now that we know what the problem is, we'll help you fix it." Before she could stop herself, she patted him on his helm. Her hand rubbed gently across the smooth, warm surface, the metal's(?) texture oddly feeling like skin, yet still being firm.
The gesture surprised Unit 001, but he allowed it. It was an oddly nice feeling. He held AI closer as a tint of blue dusted his silver cheeks. "Will we be viewing the memory now?"
"Whenever you're ready." Kioku nodded, getting on her knees to be at eye level with him. "All you need to do is think of it."
"Understood."
The moment he said that the world they were in began to swirl like a tornado. The scene around them distorted completely, other colors mixing into the scape. Red, white, and blue melded together, and the ground beneath transformed.
All of them heard a voice at that moment.
"...ℕ𝕖𝕠..."