Project M0k.0 Original Models

Medium: Clip studio paint

Date of Completion: April 2024

The Beginning

In the distant future, project M0K.0 - 3 advanced and intelligent robots - embarks on a journey. Their goal was to find a new, inhabitable planet for their human creators. Mankind had reached a point of no return in the destruction of their own home.

For light years, they scanned the vast universe for an energy great enough to power human technology.

Finally, they come upon a planet, rocky and glowing orange.

The three robots land to find endless cave systems filled with a pulsing orange crystal. The crystal’s power was so great that it warped the space around it, like a fire’s heat distorting the air. The robots felt themselves charge up simply by approaching the golden light.

They entered the mouth of one of the largest caves, physically drawn in by the droning buzz of electricity. The bravest and most desperate of the three - known simply as the tall one - reached out to touch the crystal and felt an overwhelming power and sentience. He felt like it empathized with their long journey - not the crystal itself, but merely its aura. He lowered himself into a pose of submission, as he’d seen humans do, and asked for the successful end of their mission.

After testing the planet for suitable conditions, the robots returned to the ship, hoping the energy of the planet would finally allow them to reach Earth and inform them. A great translucent screen emerged from the wall and lit up the ship. With hope, the three robots waited to be faced with eager human scientists, but what they saw was an abandoned white room, once filled with fluorescent lighting, now reclaimed by nature. They were too late. 

When the realization of his failure began to set in, an overwhelming warm light outshone the screen and bounced off the tall one’s smooth, metallic exterior. The crystal’s power sympathized with their despair and offered its planet as a blank slate. 

The robots decided to carry out their mission with their knowledge and with new generations of robots. The tall one had seen the cruelty and neglect that led to his creation. He had witnessed the hypocrisy of mankind, grasping for some way technology could find them a new way of life, yet negligent of the life that suffered around them; The tall one decided they would treat this planet better than the humans did, but they would include all the best aspects of humanity in their honor.

Photo by Peter de Vink: https://www.pexels.com/photo/lighted-cave-849385/

Creation

The tall one crouched down to his wheels, making himself as low as possible, with gratitude for the crystal’s generosity. He told the crystal’s aura his intentions, though it knew. To differentiate between the power source itself, they named the sentient aura, “Moko.” 

    Bowing down before Moko, he described the sun, the dangerous yet necessary ball of fire, which gave both life and death. Moko used its tangerine light to illuminate the planet from above. 

He described the flora that outstretched toward the sun and brought the humans joy. He told Moko about the vivid color that the humans had washed out, seen naturally in flowers and trees. The tall one made sure the emphasize the most notable color: green. Moko covered the planet in rich green grass. He explained to Moko that the flora would persevere and outlive the humans. Moko painted the landscape with tropical, flourishing trees and hibiscus. With each addition, Moko became stronger; the tall one’s suggestions helped it to thrive. 

    Moko pulsed with anticipation for the planet’s new development. The tall one reminisced with sorrow and continued. He described the vast ocean; deep and unknown. Despite its unexpected nature, humans would bathe in the water and become coated in its foam. In the deepest valleys between caves, Moko filled them with clear water, on which the sun’s rays would bounce. The waves began to ripple and distort into small strips of vibrant color. The strips came to life and swam as tropical fish once did, dancing around vivid coral reefs. The tall one explained that the ocean, like the sun, would give and take relentlessly; but this contradiction is what made nature so incredible. 

The tall one was most fascinated by the individuality and expression seen in humans. These aspects were most sensitive and personal to humans; resistance to them inspired most of the cruelty that eventually led to their demise. However, it was also celebrated and encouraged by some groups, which is where humanity thrived the most. The tall one knew he wanted to make generations of new robots, customizable parts, and costumes. They had plenty of energy, so next the tall one needed materials. Moko saw the components of the tall one and filled its caves with plenty of sturdy metals and strong materials. It scattered plenty of fibrous plants to make unique clothing.

The tall one nearly forgot to mention Earth’s prior non-human companions: animals. Some humans did everything in their power to save the animals from man’s sabotage. The tall one found peace in knowing that nature had reclaimed the space station; he was sure animals found a way too. Making small fish was easy for Moko, but as it worked its way up to mammals, it had to use more energy than ever before. Moko saw how important the animals were to the tall one, and so it mustered up all of the energy it gained by creating the world and put it into amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.

The tall one had seen how architecture had developed on Earth, from unique structures with minimal interference to its environment to countless stacks of geometric, soulless blocks to compensate for the growing population. Architecture became a separation between man and Earth. The tall one knew of a material they could use to keep society in touch with its surroundings: glass. Moko understood that the new planet would need plenty of sand. Moko filled the gap between land and ocean with soft, white sand.

Previously extinct birds fluttered and critically endangered lions rose from a slumber. The animals stretched the limbs they thought they’d lost and absorbed their new habitat.

Photo by Basil MK: https://www.pexels.com/photo/scenic-view-of-waterfall-247041/