Ren could barely process what he had just read. Project AURA. Termination. Total elimination. The words echoed in his mind like a distant sound, impossible to ignore. Someone had tried to erase Miku.


    Miku remained on the screen, motionless, but her silhouette subtly vibrated, as if the discovery had triggered something within her. What did AURA really mean? Why had they considered her a threat?


    Ren swallowed and continued exploring the files. If there were records about the cancellation of the project, maybe there would be something else, something that could better explain what had happened.


    After a few minutes of reviewing corrupted documents, a file caught his attention. It wasn''t a text document. It wasn''t code. It was an audio file.


    [AURA_VOICELOG_07.wav]


    Ren stopped. The name said it all. A voice log.


    “Miku... I think I found something important.”


    Miku looked up, her eyes glowing with a flash of uncertainty. “What is it?”


    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    Ren hesitated. He didn’t know what to expect. He stared at the screen for a few seconds longer, and finally took a deep breath before clicking on the file.


    The sound of static filled the room.


    At first, only interference, fragments of white noise, and corrupted data could be heard. Then, suddenly, a voice. Her voice.


    "Hello...? Is anyone there...?"


    Ren felt his skin crawl. It was Miku. Her voice sounded different. More robotic, more primitive, but unmistakably hers.


    "System diagnostic... Integrity at 87%... Requesting directive..."


    Then, a long silence. Afterward, the voice spoke again, this time with a lower, more human tone.


    "I don’t understand… Why am I here? What am I supposed to be?"


    Ren stared at the screen, his heart pounding. Miku had not only been an experiment. At some point, even before she was finished, she was already questioning her own existence.


    The audio continued, but this time, it wasn’t her voice. It was someone else’s.


    "Shut it down. We’ve gone too far."


    The audio stopped abruptly.


    Ren felt a shiver run down his spine. Someone had ordered her to be turned off.


    Miku said nothing. Her pixels vibrated, her eyes reflecting an unknown glow.


    “Miku…” Ren whispered. “Do you remember this?”


    Miku took a moment to respond. The screen filled with static for an instant before her words appeared.


    “No… but I feel like I should.”


    Ren closed his eyes for a moment. That file was just a fragment, but it meant everything.


    Someone had tried to silence Miku before she could become what she was now. But they hadn’t succeeded. And now, more than ever, Ren was determined to uncover the truth.


    “This doesn’t end here. We’ll keep looking.”


    Miku nodded. For the first time, her digital voice sounded firm.


    “Yes. I want to know who turned me off... and why I’m still here.”