sassymaru | IC Inbox | VICTORY ROAD

Eight. He has matured some, to be sure. But yes. Eight.

[Saejima was responsible. Take it up with that guy. Shadowmaru wasn't around for that decision. He was created a while afterward. So all he has to go on are the stories of the others.]

[His fingers resume toying with the ball.]

The first Brave Police unit brought online. Deckerd, the Brave Detective. Surpassed his programming and became fully alive. All of our AIs are copied from his own.

[Armin came here to deliver the pokeball, but honestly, for the moment, it has completely slipped his mind. This topic is just fascinating to him.]

How many of you are there? And what you do mean by surpassing his programming and becoming alive? Do you mean becoming conscious as you are?

[Be proud, Armin, you're one of the few who've gotten any information out of this robot.]

Eight, now. We are the only eight Brave Police units in the world.

[After what happened to the UK team... and--]

We were designed with some capacity to feel. However, as I understand it, it was the Boss' interactions with Deckerd that allowed him to truly have emotion. To be more than simple data.

[Who can resist this coconut with his inquisitive nature?]

Then I can see why they would want to keep them close. That really is a remarkable influence.

Does he have the same sort of influence on the rest of you, or is it something just between the two of them?

[No one can. Not even the robot.]

Indeed, it is. We, regrettably, were not close.

So I cannot say. It's entirely possible, but ... as I said, we were not as close as he and the others.

Well, if there is eight of you, I can imagine he can't be close to each one of you.

[That'd be a tall order for any person, let alone an eight-year-old child. Which, for the record, still weird.

Though the small lull in questions also has Armin realising just how many questions he's been asking Shadowmaru. Grandpa would be disappointed in his lack of manners.]

Sorry, ever since I arrived here, I've been hounding you with nothing but questions. You haven't even had a chance to see your new pokemon yet. I hope I haven't been bothering you.

Edited 2019-07-15 19:12 (UTC)

His heart does lie with Deckerd, it's true.

[And there's no malice or irritation in the statement. It's just a simple fact. One he has long since accepted.]

[Shadowmaru shakes his head.]

It is hardly a bother. It is rare I speak of the others.

I wouldn't mind hearing more about them, if you ever wanted to talk about the others.

[He doesn't want to push because he knows it can be painful to talk about people you miss. But at the same time, if this is something Shadowmaru wants to talk about, well, he's certainly interested.]

Ah, well. I wouldn't want to impose. You didn't arrive here to listen to my ramblings, after all.

[He doesn't want to trouble Armin -- the teen has already done quite a lot. And, really was only here to make a delivery.]

[Shadowmaru loves to talk about himself... to an extent. It seems like that extent has been reached.]

I don't see it as an imposition. I enjoy learning more about the various worlds people came from. I feel it helps me understand them better, so if you ever would like to talk about the place you are from and the rest of the Brave Police, I would be interested in listening.

[But perhaps, now is not the best time for that. He does have an appointment to keep and he wants to see Shadowmaru's reaction to his new pokemon before he goes.]

I don't necessarily mean right now, but if you ever want to... Of course, I wouldn't mind telling you about my own world either though I'm afraid it is not necessarily going to be a pleasant thing to hear.

Ah, well. I'll see if I can think of more to say. We weren't a terribly interesting lot.

[A lie. But... he's already said too much. Already gotten too close to revealing too much. He smiles, distantly, looking back down at the pokeball.]

I would be honored to hear of your world, I assure you. Should you feel the urge to divulge such secrets to my ears.

[Not so interesting, he says. Well, there are plenty of people who'd disagree with that.]

Ah, they aren't really secrets. There are several of us here, and I'm sure we've all told bits and pieces to various people. It's all very different from most other worlds, but for us it is just the way things are.

[Which is not to say there aren't secrets. There are a ton of secrets, as Armin found out in this world. But that is not something he'll share with anyone. He has a deal to keep, after all.]

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