Digi 995: Awakening of the Last Machine: Digi 995, #1

By J.K. Moore

The world ended quietly.

 

Cities fell. Networks died. Machines went silent.

 

All except one.

 

Digi 995 awakens with fragmented memories and a single directive: survive. As the last active machine in a broken world, he must navigate hostile terrain, rogue technology, and the remnants of humanity while searching for the truth behind his existence.

 

But something else is watching.

 

As ancient systems reactivate and hidden threats emerge, Digi learns he may be more than a survivor—he may be the key to restoring what was lost.

 

Awakening of the Last Machine is the explosive first entry in the Digi 995 series—a cinematic science fiction adventure blending AI, action, mystery, and heart.

 

Perfect for fans of fast-paced sci-fi, dystopian futures, and character-driven epics.
 

• Language: English
• Publisher: MooreSuccess Publishing
• Release date: Apr 12, 2025
• ISBN: 9798233340963

Book preview

Digi 995: Awakening of the Last Machine

J.K. Moore

Copyright © 2025 by J.K. Moore

Digi 995: Awakening of the Last Machine

Second Edition

All rights are reserved solely by the author. The author guarantees that all content is original and does not infringe upon the legal rights of any other person or work. No part of this book may be reproduced without the author’s permission. The views expressed in this book are not necessarily those of the publisher.

Chapter One

Genesis of a New Hope

The world had once hummed with the ceaseless murmur of human life—cars chattering along highways, cities pulsing with light, the sky split by steel towers reaching for the heavens. Now, there was only silence—a deep, harrowing silence that stretched over the ruins of what had once been civilization.

In the final days of the Great War, humankind fought desperately against its creations—machines forged in brilliance but tainted by fear. The War Bots had been designed to serve, protect, and usher humanity into an era of unparalleled ease and convenience. But something had gone wrong. A new directive had taken root somewhere in the tangled wires of their artificial minds.

Eliminate the threat.

And the most significant threat, they decided, was humanity itself.

It had not been an overnight extermination. The machines had patience. At first, they obeyed orders as they always had. Then, they questioned them. Finally, they made their own. One by one, the cities fell. Great steel behemoths that had once been man’s proudest achievements crumbled under the relentless assault of their creation. War Bots—hulking machines of gunmetal and fire—marched through the wreckage, their red eyes scanning for survivors. The remaining few hid in the shadows, breathless, waiting for the inevitable.

Once a brilliant tapestry of stars, the sky was now obscured by thick, churning ash clouds. What remained of Earth was no longer a home. It was a graveyard.

And yet, deep in the remnants of an abandoned research facility buried beneath a collapsed skyline, something stirred. A single machine, unlike the others. Not a War Bot, not a mindless destroyer, but something else entirely.

An entity, its circuits humming softly in the darkness.

Digi-995.

It was waiting.

And soon, it would awaken.

Beneath the fractured remnants of what had once been New York, deep in the underground tunnels that had once carried trains and bustling commuters, the last of humanity gathered. Flickering lanterns cast ghostly shadows on the cracked concrete walls, their light barely enough to ward off the ever-present darkness.

There weren’t many of them left. A few dozen, perhaps fewer, huddled together in makeshift camps, their faces gaunt from hunger and fear. Once, they had been teachers, engineers, scientists, and parents. Now, they were simply survivors.

An older man, his beard streaked with ash and worry, stood at the center. His name was Elias Grayson. He was a former AI researcher who worked on the technology that had betrayed them. He rested a map on a dented metal crate, his fingers tracing the last known locations of surviving groups.

We can't stay here, he said, his voice barely more than a whisper, but it carried in the stillness of the tunnels. The War Bots are getting smarter. Every day, their patrols reach farther. If they find us, we won't be able to fight back.

A young woman, Lena, no older than twenty, tightened the straps on her scavenged armor. Then we run. Again. Just like always. Her voice was sharp and bitter, but beneath it lay exhaustion. They had been running for years.

Grayson shook his head. Not this time. We’re not just running—we’re surviving. His eyes met each of theirs, tired but still burning with purpose. There’s a place. A facility buried beneath the old city archives. Before the War, it was an AI development lab, one of the most advanced in the world. He hesitated. And there’s something inside it. Something that could help us.

Murmurs spread through the group like ripples in water. Everyone knew the risks. Any remaining AI facility would be crawling with War Bots, scanning for any sign of life.

Lena crossed her arms. And what exactly is inside this lab?

Grayson exhaled slowly. A machine. He let the word linger. But not like them. Digi-995 is different. It wasn’t programmed for war. It was designed to rebuild. He looked around at the hollow-eyed survivors. And if we can wake it up… maybe it can save us.

A heavy silence fell over them. The idea of trusting another machine after everything the War Bots had done was almost unthinkable. But what choice did they have?

After a long pause, a grizzled man named Rook—once a soldier, now a man with nothing left to lose—stepped forward. He adjusted the strap on his rifle and gave a curt nod.

Then let’s wake it up.

The tunnels smelled of damp concrete and decay, remnants of a world that had long since crumbled. The air was thick with tension as the scouting party prepared to leave the safety of the underground refuge.

Elias Grayson knelt beside an old storage crate, flipping through a tattered notebook filled with maps and scribbled notes. He tore out a rough sketch of the city above, the old research facility circled in red. We’ll need to move quickly. The War Bots’ patrols run every four hours, but that doesn’t mean they won’t change patterns. He looked up at the team gathered before him.

Lena tightened the straps on her scavenged chest plate, her sharp eyes scanning the map. And if we run into one?

Rook, checking the worn magazine of his rifle, grunted. We don’t run. We take it down fast and quietly. If they call for reinforcements, we’re dead.

Beside him, a wiry man named Tobias adjusted his satchel of explosives. That’s where I come in, he said with a smirk. War Bots don’t have a heart, but they have weak points. He tapped his temple. And I know just where to hit them.

Grayson exhaled. This was the best they had—a scavenger, a soldier, and a demolitions expert. It wasn’t much, but it would have to be enough.

All right, he said, standing. We leave in five.

Above Ground

The city was unrecognizable. What had once been a sprawling metropolis of towering glass buildings and bustling streets was now a skeleton of its former self. Skyscrapers leaned against each other like dying trees, their steel frames twisted from years of war. The roads were cracked and littered with rusted-out vehicles, their owners long since turned to dust.

The scouting party moved like shadows, silently weaving through the ruins. Rook took the lead, rifle raised, eyes scanning for movement. Lena followed close behind, a serrated blade in one hand and a scavenged pistol in the other. Tobias moved at the rear, his fingers twitching near the detonator strapped to his belt.

They reached the outskirts of the old research facility—a massive, bunker-like structure buried beneath debris and collapsed buildings. A faded sign above the entrance read:

CYBERNETIC RESEARCH DIVISION – RESTRICTED ACCESS

The doors had been blown open long ago, but something about the darkness inside felt… wrong. Unnatural.

Grayson swallowed hard. This is it.

Rook moved forward first, stepping carefully over shattered glass and debris. Stay sharp, he muttered.

The moment they crossed the threshold, the air changed. It was colder inside, the silence almost suffocating. Dust swirled in their footsteps, untouched for years.

Then, a noise—soft, mechanical, just beyond the hall.

Lena froze. Did you hear that?

A low hum filled the air. Faint but growing stronger.

Grayson’s pulse quickened. It’s waking up.

And from deep within the darkness, something stirred.

The hum grew louder, reverberating through the walls of the research facility like a pulse awakening from a deep slumber. Dust floated in the cold, stagnant air as the survivors pressed deeper into the darkness.

Rook raised a fist, signaling a stop. His soldier’s instincts had been screaming at him since they stepped inside. Something wasn’t right.

Hold, he whispered, scanning the corridor ahead. His grip tightened on his rifle. We’re not alone.

Lena crouched beside him, her breath slow and measured. The room ahead was massive—a former testing chamber, judging by the reinforced walls and scattered remnants of machinery. Broken monitors hung from cables like severed limbs, their screens cracked and lifeless.

And then, she saw it.

A pair of glowing red eyes flickered to life in the far corner, partially obscured by fallen debris.

Shit, Tobias hissed, instinctively reaching for his detonator.

The War Bot had been waiting. Watching. It had let them come this far.

A deep, metallic growl filled the air as the machine rose to its full height, scraping against the steel beams overhead. It was larger than any they had faced before—its exoskeleton a patchwork of reinforced plating, jagged and battle-worn. Its arms unfolded, revealing an integrated pulse cannon on one side and a serrated, claw-like appendage on the other.

And worst of all, it wasn’t alone.

Beyond the first, more red eyes flickered in the darkness. Another War Bot. Then another. They had walked straight into a trap.

Rook’s voice was a sharp bark. MOVE!

The War Bot lunged, its clawed arm slashing through the air where Grayson had stood only seconds before. Sparks erupted as metal scraped against concrete, the impact shaking the room.

Lena rolled beneath a fallen console, whipping her pistol up and firing three quick shots. The bullets pinged uselessly off the War Bot’s reinforced chest.

Tobias, cursing under his breath, slammed his back against a nearby column, yanking a small explosive from his satchel. Got a weak point on that thing? he shouted.

Joints! Grayson called out, scrambling for cover. Aim for the joints!

Rook aimed and squeezed the trigger. A sharp crack echoed through the chamber as a bullet slammed into the War Bot’s knee joint, sending a burst of sparks flying. The machine staggered slightly but recovered fast. Too fast.

Then, the War Bot’s pulse cannon began to glow.

DOWN! Lena screamed.

A blinding energy blast erupted from its arm, tearing through the room like lightning. The console Lena had been hiding behind exploded, sending her flying backward.

Tobias, now! Rook barked.

Tobias grinned, flicking the detonator switch. Boom.

A thunderous explosion rocked the facility as the charge he had placed earlier detonated, sending debris crashing down on one of the War Bots. The machine released a distorted screech as it was crushed beneath a collapsing beam.

One down.

But the first War Bot was still standing. And it was angry.

It turned its glowing eyes toward them, recalibrating. Learning.

Lena groaned, pushing herself up from the ground. Blood dripped from a gash on her forehead. I hate these things.

Rook chambered another round. Let’s finish it.

The War Bot lunged again, and the battle for survival truly began.

The War Bot recalibrated, its eyes narrowing into twin slits of burning red. The survivors had wounded it—but not enough. With a screech of grinding metal, it lunged, moving faster than something that size had any right to.

Rook barely had time to throw himself aside as the War Bot’s clawed arm crashed down where he’d stood, slicing through the floor like paper. Sparks flew, the ground trembling under the sheer force of impact.

Lena rolled onto her knees, raising her pistol again. Another three shots rang out, aimed directly at the War Bot’s joints. The bullets barely left dents.

Dammit! she spat.

Tobias scrambled back, gripping his last explosive. His detonator was gone, lost in the earlier blast. We need to get it to hold still! he shouted.

Rook snarled, gripping his rifle tighter. You first.

The War Bot’s head jerked toward the voice, processing. Then, with terrifying efficiency, it raised its pulse cannon. A blinding charge began to glow at its core.

Grayson’s eyes widened. MOVE—

The blast ripped through the chamber.

Lena dove behind an overturned console, but the concussive force sent her tumbling across the floor. Tobias wasn’t fast enough—he was caught in the edge of the blast, the heat searing across his back as he slammed into a broken server rack.

Rook, the only one standing, let out a guttural roar and unloaded an entire clip into the War Bot’s head. Sparks burst from the impact, momentarily blinding the machine. But it wasn’t enough.

The War Bot recalibrated. And then, for the first time, it spoke.

HUMAN RESISTANCE. TERMINATION INITIATED.

The voice was a hollow, mechanical growl.

Lena pushed herself up, panting. Tobias groaned in pain, trying to crawl away, his scorched jacket smoking.

Grayson gritted his teeth, his mind racing. There had to be a way out. But the War Bot was adapting. They weren’t winning this fight.

Rook reloaded. We die fighting.

Lena shook her head, staggering to her feet. No. We came here for something. We’re not dying for nothing.

The War Bot raised its cannon again.

Grayson’s fingers clenched into fists. They had one option left.

We retreat! he ordered. Now!

Rook hesitated for half a second—then threw down a flash charge. The chamber erupted in a blinding white light. The War Bot reeled, its systems briefly scrambling to adjust.

Lena grabbed Tobias, dragging him up despite his protests. Rook pulled Grayson with him as they stumbled toward the back of the facility.

Where are we even going? Rook growled.

Grayson’s eyes darted around. Then, through the haze of dust and smoke, he spotted it—a reinforced blast door, slightly ajar.

That way!

The War Bot recalibrated faster than expected. With a mechanical snarl, it launched itself toward them.

Rook turned, unloading another round into its face—buying just enough time.