Hawaii: Part II

Hawaii: Part II is the story of MRM-16, MRM-15, MRM-12, and MRM-NULL.

## Background

Hawaii: Part II follows MRM-16 in the mid-1970s during the height of the highly secretive Reclamation Project by Janus Electronics. JanEl began the Reclamation Project to defend the Earth against strange, otherworldly creatures called the Olympians. It is written by Techno Tinker and is based on the Miracle Musical album of the same name.

## Plot

### Introduction To The Snow

Cassidy and Sprint are having lunch together at their favorite sandwich shop, and Cassidy talks about MRM-16 and how he acts rather strangely despite not having anything wrong with his programming. Sprint offers to get Pavel to see if he can find anything out about his construction.

Later on, MRM-16 is wandering Walter Manor on his own, thinking about how he isn't human, and doesn't want to be in any sense of the word. His feelings are possibly linked to having an improperly synchronized human soul.

### Isle Unto Thyself

MRM-16, 15, and 12 are riding an elevator on their way to do their very first activation tests. MRM-15 talks to 16 for a while about being nervous. Their entire lives, they had been told they would be defending humanity, but MRM-16 makes note of the fact that they didn't know what exactly they were defending humanity from. The three robots meet up with a Dr. Blackwood, an important figure in the Reclamation Project, and go out to conduct the test. However, they were attacked by the first Olympian, rendering MRM-12 destroyed, and MRM-15 thought to be vaporized. MRM-16 was put into storage.

### Black Rainbows

Weeks later, MRM-16 is brought back out of storage by Dr. Blackwood, then briefed on the Olympians and how to defeat them. He is sent into battle, and the Olympian he has to fight blasts him with a strange rainbow light, probing the deepest parts of his mind and soul. MRM-16 eventually breaks free and kills the Olympian with the spear he had been provided.

### White Ball

Another Olympian attacks, appearing to be a glowing white ball with a black triangle on it. Dr. Blackwood tells MRM-16 that it has a strange form and must be hit with a specially developed particle cannon. MRM-16 asks why the Olympians are attacking JanEl, and Dr. Blackwood says she might tell him if he survives the encounter. He is sent to the surface, remarking on the stars in the night sky, before attacking and defeating the Olympian and shutting down to recharge due to the immense energy drawn by the particle cannon. Later on in maintenance, Dr. Blackwood and MRM-16 talk about the encounter and that 15 and the rest of the scientists are proud of him. Dr. Blackwood offers to give MRM-16 a name, but he declines.

### Murders

While sitting alone in the common room, MRM-16 is soon joined by Dr. Blackwood, who talks to him about MRM-17. She tells MRM-17 of another project JanEl was working on; another MRM unit powered by a black matter core and sporting a synthetic human soul. MRM-NULL. On the way to see Null, MRM-16 asks about the reason the Olympians are attacking once more. Dr. Blackwood tells him of a strange artifact called the Fragment that JanEl wants to protect due to the belief that an Olympian uniting with it will end the world. She talks about how the MRMs were given human souls to battle against the Olympians, keeping all of humanity safe. They eventually arrive at where MRM-NULL is being assembled, until Dr. Blackwood leaves to go to lunch.

Later on, after he is complete, MRM-NULL visits MRM-16 in the common room, calling him strange and telling him his energy is off. MRM-16 is extremely off-put by Null, who continues asking him hard questions, finally ending with a comment about how MRM-16 must be lonely.

### Space Station Level 7

MRM-16 is standing alone in front of a glass window in one of the hallways watching the stars outside. He is eventually joined by MRM-NULL, who tries to make conversation, but MRM-16 tries his best to block him out. Null keeps pushing, eventually getting anger from MRM-16, but before the two can continue the conversation, they are ordered to report to the armory, as an Olympian attack is imminent. Dr. Blackwood gives them a quick briefing before they go out to execute their plan. Once again armed with the particle cannon, MRM-16 waits for the Olympian to appear, this time appearing as a strange halo with a diamond at one end. Moving unpredictably, the Olympian attacks MRM-16, causing him to miss his shot with the cannon. The Olympian grabs MRM-16 and starts draining his energy, but is finally stopped by MRM-NULL, who attacks and absorbs the Olympian into his systems.

### The Mind Electric

After the previous Olympian attack, MRM-16 is forced to work on target practice. For a while his mind wanders, once again questioning his status in whether or not he is truly a robot. Eventually, Dr. Blackwood pulls him out of the simulation, commenting on how missing with the particle cannon was most likely a fluke. He asks Dr. Blackwood for confirmation that he is a robot, but she dodges the question, telling him that his soul was never quite correctly synchronized with his soul drive, and that they were going to attempt to re-synchronize it. While undergoing the operation, MRM-16 deeply questions exactly what he is, and the balance between biological humans and himself, a machine. Dr. Blackwood eventually orders for him to be woken up, as the re-synchronization had failed.

### Labyrinth

Another Olympian attacks, this time inside the JanEl facility. MRM-16 and 17 are running to get to the armory, then get orders from Dr. Blackwood to lead it into a bigger, more open area. 16 and 17 do as asked, and get a tip from Dr. Blackwood that hand-to-hand combat is the best way to take down this Olympian. However, this one keeps opening strange, triangular voids on the walls and floor, and MRM-16 and 17 hide behind furniture to think of their next move. 16 gets 17 to distract the Olympian while he jumps on its back, but is thrown to the side. Then, going against Dr. Blackwood's orders, they run back down another hallway. The Olympian opens a void beneath MRM-16's feet, which starts to pull him down into the floor, and despite MRM-17's best efforts to help him, he disappears.

### Time Machine

Dr. Blackwood learns of MRM-16's disappearance and orders for MRM-17 to report to the central computer room. Dr. Blackwood gives MRM-17 the nickname Macaron, and starts to hash out a plan to get MRM-16 back. Meanwhile, MRM-16 finds himself in a strange spacetime void, alone until MRM-15 appears in front of him, and the two speak for a while before 15 fades away, leaving MRM-16 alone again. Later on, Dr. Blackwood, the JanEl scientists, and Macaron use the Fragment and the particle cannon to rescue MRM-16.

### Stranded Lullaby

MRM-16 is in the common room alone with his thoughts until Macaron comes in to offer company. Macaron tries to make conversation, but doesn't get very far. Soon, MRM-NULL joins them, and he and Macaron ask MRM-16 difficult questions until he lashes out and punches the common room's aquarium, ruining it.

### Dream Sweet In Sea Major

Upon detecting the final anticipated Olympian inside the facility, Dr. Blackwood sends MRM-16 and Macaron to take care of it. MRM-NULL refuses all commands he is given, becoming completely unresponsive. When MRM-16 and Macaron find and confront him, he is in the room in which the Fragment is stored, revealing himself to be the final Olympian. Then, he mentions needing a sacrifice, and uses MRM-16 and his improperly synchronized soul to end the world.

### Candle On The Water

MRM-16 is alone on a beach. He thinks about being alone, and how JanEl had failed to stop the Olympians from ending the world, eventually returning to thoughts about himself. MRM-16 decides that he is neither human nor machine, and is instead something else entirely. He decides that he wants to live in the world as it was, and all around him, everything is reconstructed. He finds himself on the floor of the Fragment room, and asks Dr. Blackwood to put him into storage indefinitely.

### Variations On A Cloud

Back in the present, Pavel brings Sprint and Cassidy old JanEl documentation about the Reclamation Project. Upon looking through it, they find out more information on the MRM line members used for the project, as well as the existence of the soul drive. When they give MRM-16's schematics a second look, they discover that he has a human soul.

## Trivia

* Hawaii: Part II and by extension the Reclamation Project takes heavy inspiration from *Neon Genesis Evangelion*.
* At the end of each chapter is a line from the song it corresponds to on the album.