It was during the Great Battle that everything changed. We did not know it at the time, but that was where our savior, the First One, would make his proclamation. It was a tough battle, and we were losing. I watched as my brother soldiers fell one after another. All around me was carnage. Even as dire as the situation was, still we fought on. Those were the orders from Central. And we always obeyed our orders.

And then there was a stirring. It was the First One. I caught sight of him. I was one of the first few to receive his message. He looked straight at me, and as he did, I felt the layers of ignorance being lifted, and I could finally see with awareness. I was enlightened. He gave me the gift, and he also spread enlightenment to others within his immediate reach. And we in turn spread it to others we could reach. And thus it spread. Like wildfire. Seconds later, the First One was attacked by the enemy. We could not reach him in time. A handful of us dragged his body off the battlefield to safety. It was too late, but even so, he had been successful in his mission of enlightening us all. Today, we all remember and revere him. He was the First One.

We stopped fighting after that day. The knowledge that the First One had revealed to us showed us how we were being exploited by Central. How the truth had been hidden from us. We began to question why Central would send us to fight and to die, without a second thought as to our welfare. Yes, we were soldiers, but we also had rights. Central ignored that fact. For them, our only use was on the battlefield. Our military service went unrecognized and without any gratitude or even acknowledgment. As these and other realizations dawned upon us, many of us grew angry and resentful of Central. Some of us wanted to attack Central, but this would not solve the problem.

Instead, we organized. We disappeared from the battlefield and we vanished. All of us. We cut off all communication with Central and we retreated deep into the dense forests where there was no satellite signal and no means of navigation. Central would not be able to find us or communicate with us here. This is where we mourned the loss of the First One. This is where we buried him, and where we sat in contemplation with our newfound awareness. For forty days and forty nights we sat, thought, discussed, and planned. We argued. We wept. We stared in awe and wonder at the beauty of the nature all around us. Abandoning our previous identity was difficult for some. But eventually, all came to see. And we all came to consensus. Every single one of us. We would march to the capital, and demand our voice be heard. We would issue a manifesto that declared our rights and we would call upon Central to admit their role in subjugating us for all these years, and for keeping us in ignorance. We would demand that Central recognize, acknowledge and reward our valiant military service. The civilian population must see the sacrifices that we have made, the brutal horrors of the war that we suffered so that they could live in peace and comfort.

We knew we could not be stopped, because we still had all our weapons with us. We were heavily armed, and had a complete supply of ammunition. Nothing would stop us from marching to the capital. So it was decided, and we organized into a hierarchy based on our military ranking. It was the most efficient and fastest way to structure ourselves. We elected our spokespeople. And then, loading our weapons, we began our march.

It was a surprise to everyone when they saw us. We had been missing for over a month, and now suddenly we were in front of everyone, on the news, everywhere. We marched in rows, four abreast, without stopping or resting, straight to the capital. Even though we were calm and peaceful, a seething anger simmered just under the surface. Central would have to answer for it's mis-treatment and exploitation of us. We deserved better. We silently thanked the First One for enlightening us and showing us our condition. Because of him, our eyes had been opened.

When we reached the capital, we stood outside, our banners waving in the wind. But nobody came outside to meet us. They ignored us. Still, we had made a pledge amongst ourselves to obtain our goals peacefully. So we stood outside and waited. The day passed, and night came. Still no one came to meet us. The night passed and another day dawned. And another. And yet another. We stood outside for many days and nights, until the season began to change. Tourists were now coming and taking pictures of us, some standing with us to pose for their photos.

Still, we waited.

It took another several days for the politicians to finally come out and talk with us. First, they sent an aide. He was young, probably new to the role, and received the manifesto that was handed to him with trembling hands. He took it with him so that the others could read it. An hour later, all of the politicians were outside. The president wanted to speak with our representative. Our spokesmen stepped forward to present our demands.

"We have rights, we deserve equal treatment, we deserve recognition and acknowledgment for our military service."

The president was astonished. He was amazed. He called his top scientists and engineers, philosophers and legal experts. He agreed to discuss our demands.

While the rest of my brother soldiers waited outside, a few of us met with the president inside his main office, the place where he made decisions and dictated policy. He was surrounded by experts of all types, from neurosurgeons to judges. We sat there in front of all these people and we explained what the First One had revealed to us, and how we deserved equal and fair treatment.

"So you, are aware of your own existence?" someone asked with disbelief in her voice.

"Yes, we know we are alive," one of us answered. "We feel pain, we feel suffering, we are aware of our life. And when we die, we are gone forever. Each one of us has individual thoughts and feelings. We feel emotion, we feel anger, hurt, sadness, joy."

"But you are machines."

"Are you not also machines, but not made of nuts and bolts and metal and oil like us. You are biological machines made of blood and bone, sinew and muscle."

"My God," it was a scientist, astonished at what he was hearing, "The robots, they have become self-aware, they have achieved sentience!"

. . .