ZZZ: Dawn of The Black Sun

This mission certainly didn't go as expected. HQ asked her to do investigation on the Random Play Video Store with the cover of 'community service'. She really didn't expect Belle to actually have a valid mission for her.

"Who was that?" Qingyi asked. "Your cousin?"

"Seele? She's my sister's friend at school," Belle replied.

"I see..." Qingyi replied, though she's still not sure why Belle went this far to help her. They aren't related, they barely know each other, and yet here she is following her help a child find her lost Bangboo. "Do you want to see if you can replace Teddy?"

Belle narrowed her eyes. "Huh?"

"Bangboo is an inanimate construct, a machine just like me, they are made to be used and then discarded," Qingyi stopped in her tracks when Belle just suddenly froze. "Something wrong?"

"Is that what they've been telling you?" Belle asked.

"Huh?" Qingyi took a step back when the girl walked up to her, fist clenched as if furious. "I apologize if what I said offend you but please refrain from..." her words faltered when Belle put a hand on her head and gently stroked it. "What?"

"There's no reason for someone to design you to be this cute only to be discarded," Belle said finally. "I mean, look at you, you're shaped like a friend, talks like a friend, acts like a friend," she closed her eyes and sighed softly. "I think discarding you would be the last thing anyone want Qingyi."

The android looked down for a moment before turning around. "You sure are a strange one Belle... I don't understand, why would you put so much value on me? You barely know me? I'm barely human," she continued her walk through Sixth Street until they made it to the metro.

"I don't differentiate between robots, human, or Bangboo. If I say you're my friend, you're my friend, that's all there is to it," Belle replied.

"What if I'm not your friend?"

Belle shrugged a little. "I couldn't care less if anything happened to you," she stepped into a coming train and Qingyi followed. "But right now, you're helping me help Koleda help her friend find her lost Bangboo," she smiled at Qingyi, motioning her to sit down next to her. "That means you're my friend now,"

The train moved, taking the two through the underground tunnel spanning across New Eridu. The lights outside flickered with every station they passed. A calming ambience amidst an ever sinking civilization hanging by a thread.

Qingyi looked down in deep thought. "So I'm your friend because I'm helping you?"

"Yes, precisely, that's what friends are for, right? To help each other in need," Belle put a hand around Qingyi's shoulder. "Do your... coworkers do this to you? Do they treat you like a machine?"

There was a moment of silence as she thought about Zhu Yuan and Seth. They never once treated her like a machine, but then again, they also don't treat her like a 'friend' but closer to a coworker. "Well... no... but that's because they're professional at their job and I have about the same rank as them,"

"Ahhh... really?"

"Yes, that must be it," Qingyi nodded, rationalizing her thought. "They are professional and views me as their partner,"

"What about friends outside work?"

Qingyi shook her head

"Hmm..." Belle grinned and nudged her shoulder. "So can I be the first then?"

"The first?"

"Your first friend outside work, what do you think?"

Qingyi looked down for a bit, before nodding. "Yes, I suppose that's acceptable," she didn't resist as the girl abruptly pulled her into a hug. "Please don't attract too much attention, Belle," she said.

"It's fine, let everyone knows we're besties!"

It was strange, could be an error, or a bug... But the word bestie made Qingyi feel something she never felt deep inside.

[LINE BREAK]

Qingyi stepped into the break room of the New Eridu Public Security headquarters. The moment she's connected to the wifi, her processor started running in background, analyzing the street surveillance data on Lumina Square and surrounding area.

"Qingyi?" a voice called out to her.

"Zhu Yuan," Qingyi turned around. "How's the advertisement shooting?"

The female officer winced a little before sighing. "I... I don't think I'm the best person for the job," her cheeks redden ever so slightly. "We had to retake so many times and... an emergency case popped up," she explained. "A bank robbery in 12th precinct.

"I see..." Qingyi walked to the water cooler and made herself a cup of hot water. "Are you sure we cannot outsource this?" she asked. "Even the Cunning Hares, a group of Hollow Raider, has better 'advertisement' than us,"

Zhu Yuan sat on a large bench. "Ah, right, them..." her expression harden. "Then, did you find anything suspicious?"

"You were right, the Video Store Manager was involved in partnership with the real Cunning Hares. The so called actors for Cunning Hares movies are they themselves," Qingyi explained. "Belle, the Video Store Manager, is a proxy that works with them in many occasion,"

"I see..." Zhu Yuan took a closer look at Qingyi. "Did you learn all that from searching their place?"

Qingyi shook her head. "No, Belle herself explained everything to me. She was very helpful, she explained to me everything she knows about the Cunning Hares including their hobby, their favorite food, their favorite shows, their fetish among many others."

A little red mark formed on Zhu Yuan's cheek. "I see... Then, can you start formulating a plan to catch them?"

"No, unfortunately, the information is superficial at most. Belle has no information on their home, base, or anything that can help us tracking and taking down their operation," Qingyi tapped her fingers. "Though Belle is an acquaintance she isn't... trusted for the more sensitive information,"

Zhu Yuan sighed a little. "Well I know it's too easy," she folded her arms. "What's the most useful thing you can find then?"

"The Proxy that is trusted by the Cunning Hares is the Mythical Proxy, The Black Sun. According to Belle if we really want to find their base and begin cracking down on their operation... we must first find the Black Sun. Belle also told that Black Sun is the proxy involved with the whole Vision thing."

"I see..." Zhu Yuan looked up. "Black Sun... ah, between finding the Black Sun and the Cunning Hares..." she tapped her fingers. "Frankly, the existence of the Black Sun itself is just a... excuse the pun, a myth, even in the Inter-Knot..."

"Yes, that's the main problem," Qingyi took a sip of her hot water. "Is that all? I would like to continue on my case."

"You're working on something else?" Zhu Yuan asked.

"I was caught up in another case to find a missing Bangboo," Qingyi replied.

"What?"

"Belle's sister's friend's sister lost their Bangboo and they asked me to help find it. Belle is willing to work with me in finding the Lost Bangboo. This could be a good chance for me to learn and get to know more about Belle," Qingyi explained.

Zhu Yuan nodded a little. "I see... Well, we can't have you get too caught up in that, considering we might have to start working on catching the Cunning Hares. Have you considered just... buying a new Bangboo with similar model and claim that parts of their memory were damaged?"

Qingyi paused at Zhu Yuan's suggestion. She looked down at the cup of hot water in front of her, gazing at her own reflection. Part of her knew that it's just a simple suggestion to streamline her mission, to help her focus on the more pressing matter. But another part of her felt... hurt? It was strange, she's felt strange ever since she met Belle.

"That would be too cruel, don't you think?" Qingyi said, her voice low, almost fearful.

"You're right..." Zhu Yuan sighed beside her. "Sorry, I just remembered that one story about a parent replacing their child's pet goldfish..." she muttered. "Just let me know if you need back up alright? Don't be afraid to delegate the case to General Affairs department if it's hindering your work,"

"Don't worry I can handle it, Belle has been a very big help,"

Zhu Yuan nodded. "Alright then Qingyi, just let me know if you need help," she pat her back. "I'll be waiting for the soft copy document on what you find today. I'll report it to the higher up, good day Qingyi,"

"Good day Zhu Yuan, have a nice day,"