#spaceship ai kin

[citizenoftmrrwlnd]

stimboard for : a spaceship ai kin with space themes, computer stuff, and the colour red without gifs that include human hands requested by a system member for their system's host

x | x | x x | x | x x | x | x

[fandoms-in-law]

Why do these future machines have bioogical scans of the companions?

Like seriously why when Amy is on the Spaceship UK or Ruby in the latest episode they get scanned and the information is just there.

With Amy's episode I reasoned it was like checking paperwork, but no, she didn't put details in, it scanned her instead.

Ruby, we can't even expect there's any way for this AI to have access to historical records from generations back.

I mean I guess there's the testimony thing from the twelth doctors final episode but in that case why? Why share these historical records with future medical equipment or voting systems?

I do not believe these systems should know anything about these women, no voting information, citizenship, baptism status, nothing.

Also why oh why would Amy or Ruby trust the information they have is accurate? So far as they know it's been centuries since they lived and historical records get worn out, accidentaly changed and whatever. Even if there was information for Amy's marital status or Ruby's next of kin I would not believe it at all.

[artdecosupernova-writing]

WASTE

sci-fi ▼ cyberpunk ▼ synthwave/neo-80s queer rep ▼ disability ▼ mental illness abuse ▼ addiction/recovery Darkspace Portent Series spin-off ▼ takes place before Thriving: Rebirth

▷ Guetry Sympa is a livewire and an adrenaline junkie, a musically talented hero with lawful blindness, so having a government-funded AI implanted in his brain to control most of his bodily systems after nearly dying isn't exactly an easy adjustment to make.

▷ Of course, there's no better way to cope with a hard breakup and recover from a five-month-long coma than by being forced by the Consortium to enlist a team of fellow contract agents for a covert operation...

▷ ...To solve a centuries-old cold case involving the mysterious disappearance of the Milky Way's enigmatic savior.

Playlist: Precious Gems and Reaver Rock

GUETRY DANON SYMPA ▼ French-American ▼ scorpio ▼ human ▼ Earth ▼ a gifted musician and elite member of a special forces task unit working for the Consortium, aided by an AI in his brain that keeps his quality of life ideal after an overdose that left him otherwise brain-dead for five months. wise-cracking smartass unafraid to tear the system apart for what's right.

SUBCUTANEOUS OPERATIONAL and TACTICAL SYSTEM (SCOT) ▼ "Scotty" ▼ artificial intelligence ▼ NodeSource ▼ prototype embedded in Guetry's brain to undo most of the damage from his overdose and keep him functional. added benefits of enhancing his eyesight and aim, providing intel on missions, and overall companionship.

ALECTURA WU ▼ Chinese ▼ aquarius(?) ▼ human ▼ Consortium Node ▼ talented spaceship mechanic and other half of the band Skywaste, co-founded by Guetry when both were in high school. doesn't like going out into the field, will also fight tooth and nail for justice where there is none.

OREN ALTAVIAN ▼ capricorn ▼ human ▼ the Himalaya ▼ self-proclaimed "entrepreneur of seedydom" and known around the Milky Way as the "Kingpin of the Node." slings the hard stuff around the galaxy and gets paid handsomely for it. endlessly charming but willfully manipulative. tends to get his way no matter what, especially at the expense of those around him who think they care for him.

ADAM "MERCURY'' LYONS ▼ scorpio ▼ human ▼ Earth ▼ also an operative for the Consortium with his identical twin sister Quincy "Mars" Lyons. a bit more by the book, but willing to do what's right even if it means risking his job. a fiery complement and challenge for Guetry both personally and professionally. 

TUXTH ▼ Rotangan ▼ Logoryt ▼ a child of a Rotangan and a biracial Rontangan/Morrite, born on the seedy planet of Logoryt. in order to combat the rough upbringing she endured, she makes a name for herself by taking on missions for the Consortium, doing her part to chip away at the Morrite Blue Prince Hyret's goal to completely overrun the Milky Way.

DAZIA FOURTEEN ▼ sagittarius(?) ▼ human ▼ Consortium Node ▼ it's unknown what Dazia's origins are other than her birthplace of the Node, though it's alleged that she's of Hispanic, Slavic, and Middle Eastern descent. used to work for Consortium security until she witnessed corrupt activity within the ranks. tough as nails but all heart.

A soft tone swirling in the waves of dark gray and flashes I couldn't decipher. Purple pulsing light. A haze, more flashing images. White lights, gloves, whirring, thumping, squashing. Hot white stars. Burnt umber pain. Scorching pink fire. Numbness in muted blue. Sparking stings. Another soft tone. A smooth yet mechanical voice right inside both of my ears at once. Hello, Guetry. I am your Subcutaneous Operational and Tactical system. What. You have suffered a great deal of neurological damage and I am going to attempt to repair as much as I can. Your next of kin has given full consent to this procedure. The fuck. I am only a prototype as of yet so I must be transparent...there may be some functions I cannot fully restore, but I will do my best to make sure you are healed well enough to wake up and are able to do the remaining recovery yourself. Is this.

[fictionkinfessions]

@ the person who kins a spaceship: my source has an ai who runs a spaceship, and so i guess the spaceship is her body. I bet you're really cool and awesome, just like my spaceship friend! i hope you adventures are fun and your crew is nice to you! - 👻🔫

[hanaphammoln]

(This alternate universe is inspired by the original Undertale by TobyFox

Underswap by PopcornPr1nce

Outertale by 2mi127

Futuretale by Rain149)

Find The Mood(FTMTale)

Once upon a time, there were two species on Earth: humans and monsters. Both live in harmony with each other, monsters favor strength and humanity favors wisdom. At first, the two seemed to get along well, but humanity was still afraid that the magical power of monsters might later dominate the world, so the elders gathered to discuss destroying monsters as well as finding them. Deep understanding of the kind of natural power that monsters possess.

Gaster - A monster whose intelligence and sharp intuition helped him guess people's intentions, he quickly tried to secretly create his own tools that could leave Earth and go to another place. somewhere that humans cannot find. Although he is very knowledgeable, he needs someone who can assist. Fortunately, a close human friend of his did not agree with the destruction of monsters and he believed that it stemmed from the selfishness and jealousy of the elders. He assisted Gaster a lot in finding fuel and creating short, simple magic formulas that were easy to understand. This surprised Gaster that humanity's intelligence and ability to learn is so good. He was also somewhat worry about human, but when he looked at his best friend, he let that thought go because of his friend sincere enthusiasm. For a long time after preparing everything, Gaster was afraid of war and had not yet prepared a way to retreat, so he did not inform Asgore, the noble king of monsters. Surely everything was fine, Gaster immediately informed his king.

Gaster: My king and queen, humans are afraid of our power. They are planning to break out uprisings to destroy what they fear.

Asgore angrily slammed his hand on the throne, frowned, stood up straight and shouted loudly.

Asgore: WHY IS THAT SO UNREASONABLE? WE MUST MAKE THIS CLEAR!

Toriel: Honey, wait a minute. If it's hot, it will cause war, costing so many innocent lives. Why don't we come to the discussion table?

.....The war broke out, although the magical power of the monsters was great, but with the magnanimity and strong solidarity of humanity, the monsters side was brought to a dead end... brought down into a pit. deep (the place to hide the spaceship that Gaster has prepared). Gaster's mouth muttered:

Gaster: 1

Human Mage: Kamrcha'dro ra

Gaster: 2

Human mage: Miloen'kro la samqra chre kin-

Gaster: 3

The spaceship suddenly flew away, with much surprise from humans and monsters. Everyone was surprised, the monsters were frozen by this shock. Asgore understood why Gaster didn't stop him, Toriel was still angry with Asgore for not listening to her and having to create a meaningless war. The spaceship flies in space, not knowing where it will stop...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Frisk - a robot that is considered the hope of humans when they gradually lose their own emotions, scientists research and send them to space so they can find a certain planet. there is some life that can give them the emotions they are slowly running out of. (Frisk is the seventh robot that contains the fuel of determination.)

Because people are increasingly delving deeper into technology, their scientific passions help them have a treasure trove of achievements that create outstanding digital technology. The more popular AI becomes, the more humans are replaced by robots. It seems that there are only a few left and they yearn to rediscover emotions and come up with the idea of creating "emotional fuels" as described in books. It was helpful at first but it seems they need something more real than artificial. Created 6 AI each in turn with each type of fuel: patience, brave, integrity, perseverance, kindness, justice but they disappeared and did not contact them when they left Earth not long ago so the The type used the last remaining fuel determination to send one more time.

The monster's side after they boarded the spaceship and went to another planet (unknown) but due to this new environment they had to change to adapt. The first time the ship landed, everyone was in the ship and tried to get a rock sample from that planet. Gaster and his assistants researched creating a type of energy when testing from a rock sample from that planet. They successfully developed a new energy called selium that can adapt to any place and any environment. The king, queen, and people were all happy to start building a world of their own, a world where they no longer had to fear being betrayed by humans.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

The 6 AI that arrived here were not destroyed but due to some errors while researching their journey. All AI as well as the fuel are carefully stored in Alphys's experimental basement. They are being placed in the charging frame as well as "something" that is in need of repair.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gaster's human best friend sent Gaster his child when the human jury found that he had betrayed humans. So he asked Gaster to raise that little child, telling him to take good care of the child and name Chara. Gaster also invited him to join the spaceship to leave earth, but he refused. He argued that he could convince, he loved the baby, so he sent his most trustworthy friend to take care of him when he fell into an unwanted situation. Gaster held the child tightly in his arms, remembering his memories and that of humanity.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was so happy because at the same time the kingdom was built, Queen Toriel was pregnant and she gave birth to a baby. Asgore, the people of the kingdom all happily blessed that baby.

Asgore: Asriel, that will be the name of our little prince.

Because Gaster is a scientist close to the royal family, he is always there to support his king. Of course, the human baby and the monster prince grew up together. Both are as close as siblings, the royal family and the monsters in the kingdom both admire and trust in humans again.

They do not discriminate against that humanity, considering it as their own members. Chara has human intelligence and senses that there is a scientific era on Earth, guessing that humans are gradually being replaced by robots. Chara grew up and successfully became a member of the royal scientific research team. Thanks to her intelligence and energy, she has also invented many useful things, written books to develop this world, and also mentioned that humanity is gradually becoming extinct. Find a way to restore the "emotions" of their fellow humans. Asriel has been with Chara since childhood. He also saw some unusual symptoms in his friend. Chara's health became increasingly unstable and she was gradually dying. Always giving her friend a lot of advice, Chara seemed to reply "thank you for worrying", but continued to look back at the documents. Asriel was helpless and could only sigh. Suddenly one day he went to his friend's office to ask, but no one answered. Feeling uneasy, Asriel immediately broke the door and rushed in to see Chara collapsed on the table. He tried to wake his friend but in vain, her body was cold. In her hand she was still holding a pen. He screamed in pain and angrily, hitting everything around him and venting his anger on his friend's documents. Suddenly, a red heart flew out from his friend's body. Asriel frowned and looked at it, then accidentally touched it and the two merged. Asriel was currently filled with "Determination", he stood still for a few seconds and then smiled painfully: "So it's true that human are afraid of monsters." He was haunted by his new power, his mind in a frenzy due to the shock of Chara's death, his mind pondering why humans fear monster power. "The better way is for humanity to come into contact with monsters legitimately when they no longer have souls", Asriel made up his own mind that humans and monsters would be better friends when they no longer had souls, meaning they no longer had emotions and should be replaced using the AI that Chara had mentioned, their appearance looked real but was fake. Before he could use the power next to him, it immediately had side effects. Asriel's chest was hot, he started vomiting black liquid, "Chara is stopping me?". "Even if I die from this new energy source, even if it goes in a different direction than you, I will not give up being friends with humans." Having finished speaking, Asriel's body disintegrated into small pieces that gradually disappeared. The prince turned into iridescent particles that covered Chara's body. Soon the monsters discovered them and informed the king. Together they buried the child. The king and queen were saddened by his children in turn. The emperor's anger boiled again and he declared, "Humans have once again taken away what is mine, my beloved son. FROM NOW ON ANYWHERE IN THIS KINGDOM IS THE SHADOW OF HUMANITY THEN KILL IT IMMEDIATELY!". The Queen of course also objected to her husband's unreasonable opinion even though she was very heartbroken, "For nothing, you blame humans? How unreasonable with your hot temper! I will contradict it with you!". Certain that one day there will be interaction between humans and monsters, Toriel separated from Asgore and went their separate ways. Asgore will kill them, Toriel will protect them.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Frisk, after each time learning to face battles with monsters, seems to have a stronger fuel of determination flowing through the robot, it begins to feel something.

In the end it was able to overcome the obstacles, reaching the king's place it showed Asgore that the humans knew their mistakes, they were now apologizing to the monsters, wanting to do get along but it's too late. The monster king was no longer impatient after all this time, he realized his mistake in hastily blaming humans. He learned to empathize and said he would help humanity return to itself, regaining their souls. At this moment Flowey suddenly appeared, coils of wire from below the surface covered all over the kingdom, "There will be no taking back the soul", "I, the prince of this kingdom will show everyone that the fuel is good much better than the fragile soul", "I will kill them all if they dare to stand in my way", after saying that it is enough to understand that Flowey took 6 fuels that Alphys stored, he drank them and then had a new power, turns into something very large but the weak point that appears is the fuel tanks. Frisk faced Photoshop Flowey again. During the battle with Photoshop Flowey, the robot took back the fuel and drank it all. Absorbing the seven fuels caused it to be about to be released, but the monsters in the kingdom did not allow it to fail, together they used their own magic to try to break the law of Photoshop Flowey's power even if only just a few seconds to help Frisk, strengthening the friendship between the two species. There's something strange about that robot. It became human and once again the war happened: humanity and monsters, but it was not for the benefit of the individual but for both. Frisk now officially saves this world as well as the emotionally exhausted humanity on Earth. In the end, Frisk defeated Photoshop Flowey, he was helpless and weak and told Frisk to finish him. But now Frisk is no longer a hollow piece of iron, they hug Flowey and warmly say: "Can you hear my breathing? I have the feeling that I can do it and you can too.", Flowey was silent, standing still for a few seconds, then pushed Frisk away and he ran away. Frisk was silent in space, they returned to the monsters- no in their minds now there were no more monsters, back to their friends. In some dark corner Flowey looked at the flowers that Asriel and Chara planted together, whispering and asking, "Chara? What kind of person am I?" Frisk suddenly appeared "No matter how bad you are, there is definitely someone who cares about you, even if you have no feelings."

Flowey was surprised because he was thinking all this time so he didn't pay attention to his surroundings, opened his eyes wide and suddenly asked: "W-Why are you-". "Frisk is right, no matter what happens, there is still someone who wants to be by your side, I'm so sorry" - Toriel walked out from behind Frisk. Asgore, Sans, Papyrus, Undyne, Alphys,... one after another, the whole kingdom emerged from the darkness surrounding Flowey. The flower looked at everything, those unapproachable eyes filled with tears. "I-I'm not everyone's Asriel, just someone who carries Asriel's wishes."

Asgore: Yes or no, you are still family to us.

Toriel: Do you accept us?

Flowey: Thank you everyone-so much.

   ------------------------------END------------------------------

\\Finally, all conflicts between humans and monsters have been resolved, Frisk prepares to return to Earth by spaceship with the help of Alphys and Papyrus. Before leaving, they turned back to look at everyone, "I promise, I will invite you to visit Earth, it's just a matter of time as long as you still remember me.", everyone nodded and smiled that they believed them. Frisk boarded the spaceship and pressed the departure button, his hands gripping the chair bar as if his will was certain that he would do something and would not give up.

\\40 years later, at the scientists' office, only Papyrus was searching for documents because Alphys was busy with Undyne, the rest were missing, probably on their day off. their. A circle of light appeared, a middle-aged figure stepped out from that circle of light, Papyrus turned around and was stunned, that person said "Hello, we haven't seen each other for a long time, am I not the one who broke my promise?", Papyrus sighed and smiled, "It's been a long wait, but I'm glad you're safe." Frisk opened his arms wide, "We invite you to visit our homeland."

[captain-lovelace]

Wolf 359 posts I have made that have made people mad: A slowly-growing list

- Bob the Dear Listener is kin with Eiffel

- Everyone in Wolf 359 has read Homestuck (feat. Lovelace and Kepler as the two types of Vriska stans and Minkowski, who still knows “Karkalicious” by heart)

- Hera is the AI version of tumblr

- Kepler’s “You know.............................. I had to............ do it......... to ‘em”

- Pryce as the Sol survivor

- Eiffel gets in trouble because he Doug his own grave

- the Wolf 359 character jock/nerd/goth/prep compass

- the Wolf 359 character DnD alignment chart

- “A young man floats on a spaceship”

- When Eiffel blinded Pryce her eyes did the blue screen of death

- Killian from TAZ is the polar opposite of Jacobi

- [Cutter voice] OwO, what’s this?

- Can’t believe Miranda Pryce is into v

- Giving the Wolf 359 characters trollsonas

- “Wolf 359 characters as ways to say you relate to something”

- along those lines [Jacobi voice] wow, kin

- “what would happen if you combined funzo and dnd”

- This one

[almostsane-things]

⚠️Warning: Everyone in this post is trans and cannot die!⚠️

Hello and welcome to DSP~! That one tag that links the many disparate posts that now litter my blog. Some context, DSP stands for Drunk Space Pirates, a oneshot ttrpg based on The Mechanisms, a musical band of traveling immortals, that accidentally stretched on over a year now because we like looking at our own characters :p

Meet the cast:

Artwork by @colaexander

From left to right, Iris, Artemus, and Enrico are our main trio of adventurers. 

Iris is the disastard (disaster bastard) and our best friend. He/she/they pronouns, self proclaimed doctor, depressed catboy rights, 30 eldritch deals in a trenchcoat. Cares deeply for everyone who is not himself.

Artemus is our fighting spirit, fae/faer pronouns, not an actual fae but just as dangerous, also has a fae cat but that’s besides the point. Either doing the stupid or enabling it. Thief, artist, chronic anti-environmentalist who just learned you’re supposed to empty your ship’s sewage tank every now and then, in a place that’s not space.

Enrico soft. They/them pronouns. Tired. I can’t roast them because they’re me. Be nice to them.

Then there’s Mettaton- no not that o- yes yes that one-

Artwork by @writer-with-caffeine

The ghost(s)/AI that holds this ship together. Literally. The spaceship didn’t even have wires last we checked. He kins Mettaton Undertale, thus the name. Iris built the body for him.

The rest of the cast is as infinitely expanding as the universe, so I’ll speedrun a few more of mine.

Mai-! (Art by me) [she/her]

The narrative’s favorite. She will do what she wants and you can’t stop her.

Prometheus (Art by me) [he/they]

You’d think sewing their mouth shut would keep them out of trouble. You’d think chaining them to a mountain to be eaten by birds would keep them out of troub-

Kana (Art by @hunbloom on Instagram) [pri/prins]

Main difference from picrew, pupils are white and pri has cochlear implants on both ears. Has been 16 for too many centuries, understandably insufferable.

Nadia (Art by @writer-with-caffeine ) [she/her]

Artemus’s long lost vampire wife. She can turn into a cat. Literally no downsides here.

And for fun, have this post @pumpkin-trash​ and I made. It’s the largest amount of our OCs in one place outside the art channel of our server. 

Pls talk to me abt your OC's 🥺🥺🥺👉👈

❤❤❤❤❤

[biosoc]

Voice: Link

He/him They/them

Status: Multiship

Human fc: gladiolus amicitia||

Eyes: emerald

Height: 8′5″

Species: AI made by the humans

Personality:

The is a giant teddy bear. He is gentle and caring for the others around him who likes to joke around, you can say he is an ideal big brother. Loyal to his friends and family on the ship.

Kin is a jokester who tends to tease a lot with the other's around him ( like a big brother ), yet, through all these personalities does Kin show his gentle nature. He will try to help anyone who is in need, especially the little ones who can not defend for themselves.

Kin tends to freely express his opinions on what's necessary, a very outspoken AI when he wants to be, Kin also loves a good fight when in training.

abilities:

Max mode:

Saburo, Tal, Yokai, Kintaro, and Saito were built advance than the others in their team. Using the Max mode, they can enhance their ability: Speed, strength, and scenes.  They were built as perfect warriors and assassins who will stop at nothing to protect the humans, even costing their lives. Although, this mode comes with a price to pay; when using too much, it would burn out their system and break much of their body with it. so they have to be careful of what level they use while in the mode. In Kintaro ’s case, he has two levels; one being durable for him to withstand, and two being the max limit in which he could end up killing himself.

Weapon of choice:

Two spears (yari) is the term for one of the traditionally made Japanese blades (nihonto) in the form of a spear, or more specifically, the straight-headed spear.

The tip of the spears are made with lasers, once the spears contacts with a body, neither would it be an organic or metal.

Story

Humanity was reaching its flourish point of the century: wealth and technologies. It was the year 2145 as it developed to further span out their prosperity.

Yet, when it started, They were in for a very big surprise. Velanos, an alien race who are known for enslaving planets for their own bindings. Yet, the humans didn’t except this, they stood ground and fight for their own freedom cost. Which turns into a full out war with the notorious race; while this was happening, the humans brought out their secret weapon, the secret project.

The awakening of the AIs who were in stasis before online. Their first mission once awoken was to gather as many humans to flee the dying planet. Total of humans that survived: 200. Humanity was destroyed, and brutally massacre only left wounds; the worst has to be the part where they had to watch their own planet is destroyed.

Now, a new mission was held. The AIs protect the last humans, and in order to do so, they were built with weapons and specific occupations. They must bring humans to a new planet to rebuild their lives and repopulate. And thus the journey begins in space to take back what was taken, on a spaceship called: ichariba chode.

The birth:

A prisoner from Velanos’ spaceship crash lands onto earth 15 years prior to the earth’s destruction. Traveling inside a prison supply ship. What the prisoner brought was stories about the race known as Velanos, how much destruction they have caused among the galaxies, and knowing that they’ll come and search for the prisoner, the alien proposes to help the humans build a spaceship to escape. Agreeing to this, humanity develops the project, allying with the worlds most well-known Scientists and Engineers alike.

Now traveling 2 years before the destruction, a group of bounty hunters (who are associated with Velanos ) finally tracks down the prisoner, yet, upon noticing the creation they have made, the bounties didn’t hesitate to slaughter all the Scientists and Engineers who worked inside the facility. ( Luckily, There were only few who have survived thanks to their luck on leaving work early that day.) As the bounty hunters try to infiltrate and destroy the AIs and the ship, yet was stop due to the heavily built bulkhead that was keeping them from entering in.

Without any more setbacks, the bounties left, leaving only traces of bodies behind before informing about their findings to the Velanos general.

This was the start of the war.

[yuexuan]

[Touken Ranbu]AI

Pairing: MikaTsuru

Rating: G

Genre: AU, scifi(?)

A/N: Another attempt at writing in English after what seems like ages :’) I might develop this into a longer fic depending on inspiration.

“Damn brat…”

A figure overstepped the limp form on the ground before making his way out of the dark alley. He ignored the mumbled curses behind him as he weaved through the garbage of a street.

From beneath his hood Tsurumaru grinned as he raised his hand to behold the bloody microchip clasped between his fingers. The small rectangular object contained a person’s biodata from their date of birth to the number of times a they had intercourse. To sum it up, everything that was to know about a person was recorded into the chip. Every citizen in the Lower Level had one implanted into them since birth.

Tsurumaru felt rich, filthy rich. The blood in his veins hummed from the rush of adrenaline of his previous encounter. It was a close call, but once again he outwitted his opponent and emerged unscathed.

Tomorrow the streets would hear that Tsurumaru had stolen from the Boss. And oh, what a delectable surprise it would be for the inhabitants of this area.

Tsurumaru was always gamed for more surprises.

He made his way to a Station and placed the microchip on the reader, whistling in appreciation as the figures appeared on the screen.

Damn, four wholesome meals – he was rich.

Tsurumaru felt like giving himself a celebratory feast, and as such did not hesitate to use up one of the four meals. In no time the Station produced a steaming bowl of mush, constituting a mixture of boiled potato, broccoli and carrots.

It smelled heavenly. How long had it been since he earned enough to eat a real meal? The liquid they served in the daily ration vial was hardly a substitute for solid food. If anything, it was more like a toxin. The high concentration of essential nutrients within the liquid always left his tongue tingling and numb after consumption. No wonder there were rumors of people losing their tongue after imbibing the liquid.  

Tsurumaru dipped a spoon into the mush, secretly enjoying the smooth texture as he rolled the spoon about before scooping up one mouthful to eat. Then another. And another. In no time he was gorging himself. All the while his eyes roamed towards the top, where the Citadel was.

Like a foreboding shadow, the Citadel loomed across the sky, covering every inch of High Level space. Stories surrounding the Citadel were numerous. Some likened it to an outer space filled with flying crafts and rockets. Others contended that it must be blessed with endless real food and lush meadows, meadows brimming with flowers that stretched into the vast expanse. Not that anyone here actually saw a meadow before aside from the imitation of one back in a popular advertisement about therapy-bots. Ever since meadows have been a hit and a symbol of prosperity.

Whatever the Citadel was, Tsurumaru wanted to know. He had a penchant for the un-ventured, often getting himself into more troubles than he could count. When referring to Tsurumaru, his cohort kin Shokudaikiri would shake his head, lamenting nonstop about how the liquid nutrient they served must have ruined Tsurumaru’s mental development.

Did Tsurumaru ever mention how much he loved his cohort kin?

Overhead a few blobs detached from the bottom of the Citadel and floated down towards the ground. On closer inspection Tsurumaru could make out the silhouette of spaceships. As the ships approached the ground, they separated, flying towards different regions.

Tsurumaru need not see to know that the number ‘3’ would be painted on the ship hovering over his region. The Sanjous were responsible for this area.

Slowly, residents emerged from their ramshackle, mumbling and moaning like the undead. For all appearances, they looked more like the dead than the undead. They arranged themselves in a haphazard line along the sidewalk, patiently waiting for their therapy session.

Even at this distance Tsurumaru could make out the figures exiting from the ship. In particular, a flash of blue sleeves grabbed his attention. And then he turned.

It was not in Tsurumaru’s nature to turn away from a scene, but he disliked the whole routine. It was not as if he had anything wrong with him – he could run, trick, plan, ambush – and perform all sorts of amazing tricks enough to survive relatively well in the Lower Level. In another words, he was fine. There was no need for him to undergo the same session as others.

Tsurumaru weaved through the throngs of people by the roadside, shoving a few out of his way and earning several dark looks as he tried to make an indiscrete escapade.

By the time Tsurumaru made it back to his living quarters, the bowl in his hand was empty. At least there was something satisfying out of the whole ordeal.

But he was in for a surprise if he thought that was the end of things.

When Tsurumaru rounded the corner of his building, he came face to face with Mikazuki.

“Oh hell-o, fancy seeing you here, I thought you were back there.” Tsurumaru gave a nervous laugh, just in time to bite back the expletive that he was about to throw.

“Why, hello,” Mikazuki hid his smile behind a long-robed sleeve, tilting his head ever so slightly to feign an innocent look. He ignored Tsurumaru’s dark mutterings and pointed to the bowl in Tsurumaru’s hand. “What is that?”

Tsurumaru froze. He forgot about the bowl and Mikazuki knew full well that his ration didn’t include full meals. He also knew that the person before him was an enforcer of rules, as evidenced by the splendid sword hanging off Mikazuki’s waist. “This? Here.” He threw the bowl right into Mikazuki’s face and darted off towards his quarters. Part of him knew that this was a pointless struggle because his abode was anything but secure, and it would prove no feat for Mikazuki to enter. Nonetheless, he ran, enjoying the glee of a good chase.

But a chase was not what Mikazuki would grant him.

Before he reached the flight of stairs leading to his quarters, it collapsed in front of Tsurumaru in a pile of heap. The young man barely saved himself from a painful experience. He looked back just in time to see Mikazuki sheathed his sword.

The bowl lay in broken halves on the pavement.

“I would appreciate it if you cooperate with me more.” Mikazuki walked towards the white-haired man, eyeing him carefully before smiling. “I’m glad the staircase didn’t fall on you.”

As if. Tsurumaru rolled his eyes, but stood still, having resigned himself to the usual routine.

The smile on Mikazuki’s face stretched ever wider, if that was even possible. He came forward and gave Tsurumaru a hug. “There there, everything is fine. I know that life here isn’t the best, but if we keep our hopes high…”

Tsurumaru rolled his eyes for the second time that day as Mikazuki went on about life lessons. It was all part of the program of a therapy-bot, to console the desperate and give them hope again. Before the bots, life in the Lower Level was akin to hell. Constant struggles over scarce resources, abandoned corpses on the streets, violent gang fights just about every few blocks… he had to admit that the bots made a change. They gave consolations and hope to the inhabitants of the Lower Level, so much so that some people became addicted to therapeutic sessions with the bots.

What Tsurumaru did not understand was why he was subjected to these sessions as well. Or why they had to create the bots in the likeness of humans? He casted a glance at the beautiful form before him, noting down the unblemished skin and flawless hair. What was the purpose of creating an impersonation of perfection when it was all fake underneath? Had humanity come to rely on artificial reality?

And really, do they have to add in a new feature for heat-radiation? He could feel the warm temperature emanating from the bot.

“…by all means let me know your thoughts and feelings, it will make you feel better after you have shared your grievances with another.” Mikazuki finally ended his whole speech, releasing Tsurumaru from the stiff embrace. “Oh and please don’t take what is not yours.” He waved the microchip that Tsurumaru obtained earlier and crushed it with a dainty flick of the fingers.

“……I feel absolute sorrow that you have decided to reward my hard work thus.” Tsurumaru gave a deadpanned stare.

“I sensed sarcasm,” Mikazuki laughed, his brows curled upwards in a smooth arc.

Tsurumaru couldn’t help but noticed how much the inventors have improved the bots’ facial features. All the nuances of the muscles right down to the twinkle of water in the bots’ eyes were so lifelike. They have really improved the features.

“Look, you’ve done your stuff, ruined my day, and I think it’s high time we part our ways.” Tsurumaru nodded towards the streets. “You still have a long queue there.”

“You are one of my charges.”

For a moment Mikazuki looked almost as if he was concerned. Almost was the key word. Because deep down, Tsurumaru knew that bots didn’t have any feelings, much less compassionate for a human being. They were programmed to do so, rather than by virtue of their own being. But whoever designed these therapeutic-sentinel-bots, they did a mighty good job of creating the illusion of a human. It was no wonder that the bots infiltrated society back then and replaced human occupations so easily. He gave a long suffering sigh and said: “I appreciate your concern but no thank you.” Cue the sarcasm in his voice.

Mikazuki shook his head and waved his hand. “Fine, fine, let me know when you do need counsel. I must be on my way.” He had just received a message from Kogitsunemaru that there were too many people for the bot to handle things on his own.

Tsurumaru watched as Mikazuki’s figure sauntered away, robes swaying gently with his movements, effectively obscuring the view of his very dangerous weapon. If only he could lay his hands on a weapon of equal grandeur…Tsurumaru narrowed his eyes.

 ~oOo~

If there was one thing to be said about the white-haired young man, it was his unending pursuit of excitement and surprises. Life-threatening situations were what he pined for and thrived in.

And so it was to no surprise of Mikazuki’s that the young man was now sitting cross-legged before him, on the spaceship heading towards the Citadel.

Rewinding back in time…the therapy bots made their round in the Lower Level and were preparing to head back to the Citadel. There were a total of five Sanjou bots overlooking this area and they formed one of the oldest model units.

It was Ishikirimaru who first noticed the deviant. “The ship’s registered a lifeform…on the outside of the thrusters.”

And so they sent the lithe Imanotsurugi and strongest Iwatooshi to investigate, only to return with a young man…who was now very charred-looking.

“Should we throw him down?” Kogitsune asked. Lower Level inhabitants were not supposed to visit the Citadel without special permission from the Saniwa and even those were granted rarely. He would gladly throw this unwelcomed hitchhiker back down below.

Tsurumaru coughed uncomfortably. He was hoping to enter with more zeal and surprise, but he overestimated the calmness of Sanjou bots. Instead all he got were raised brows and amused smiles. Perhaps they haven’t installed the program for surprise yet. “Therapy bots should not harm a human being.” He recited the statement he read from an abandoned leaflet.

“We were also assigned as sentinels to enforce the laws.” Ishikirimaru pointed out. There was a reason why all the bots that came down to the Lower Level were equipped with a sword. In the earlier days, the prototypes were embroiled in street encounters and consequently destroyed. Thus it became a priority for the bots to be able to defend themselves.

Before Tsurumaru could think of another excuse to explain his presence, Mikazuki stepped up and placed a hand on his head. “I’ll take him to the Saniwa. After all, he is under my jurisdiction.”

“You need not—” Kogitsunemaru furrowed his brows, a part of his circuit was sending quick alarming spasms warning him that they were about to do something that defied the rules.

“Leave it to me.” Mikazuki cut him off, the crescent moon in his eyes glowed for a second. The two bots eyed each other, frames stilled. The tension in the air was thick.

“…so be it. We will let him stay,” Ishikirimaru intervened before any of the two’s decision tree chose a duel option.

Tsurumaru watched in fascination as the exchange went back and forth between the bots, for a time forgetting that he was the source of the predicament. Sure, he had seen a lot of bots in the past, but he hadn’t seen them interacting with one another up close before. Whatever was used to code their personalities was very successful. For a moment he was tempted to believe that the bots before him were real people.

“But he cannot roam freely.” Ishikirimaru continued, holding Tsurumaru’s hands together and clasping a metal cuff on top. In a moment twin blue circles of light emanated from the cuffs and a low hum vibrated through the air.

With the issue thus settled, the bots went to rest, no longer concerned about Tsurumaru’s presence on the ship.

However, Tsurumaru knew better than to push his luck this time. With every move he made, he saw Mikazuki’s lashes flutter and knew that the bot was ready to take him out in a moment if he so much as to make a run. He resigned himself to sitting in the corner and counting down the time till they reached the Citadel.

[cyanopicacyana]

This post refused to show  up in any of the things I tagged it as when I searched my blog for it but anyway here’s a draft from mid March that I just found and never posted where I struggle with words wrt this aspect of myself:

How would one even label something like “interplanetary spacecraft” lmao with animals and fictional species it’s like “I’m [animal]kin or [animal]therian” and with fictional characters it’s the same but with the character’s name. Some things fall into broader concepts like alienkin or robotkin or things like that. I don’t really know how the concept of “extra terrestrials” or “aliens” really works though once a star system’s sapient species are capable of interplanetary travel. And robot... I feel like “robot” is kind of like “monster” where I’m sure it has its set definitions but people sure like to use it to mean all sorts of things that might fall outside of those definitions. Is a spaceship a robot anymore than a prosthetic limb that happens to have a bit of a futuristic look to it is a “robot limb?”

I suppose AI is much more accurate, but I still dont feel like that’s quite right. There’s more to it than just “artificial intelligence used to self pilot a craft.” The ship itself is intrinsic to the identity, even though the intelligence could technically be separated, much like one could remove the computing components from a present day automatic car or self driving car.

I probably had more I wanted to say and so hadn’t published it, but I think it’s neat to look back at old self examinations like this. I’m pretty sure I have other posts about this lurking in my drafts, I should go dig them up.

machine! machine kind! I feel so silly. I've sat here for so many hours trying to think of an easier way to label myself other than "inter planetary space craft" and tying my brain in knots considering things that just don't feel like they fit when *machine* is right there. "robot" please, machine! and all it took was seeing someone else with a similar(yet very different) experience and thinking "oh! another machine!" oh my goodness.

this also lets me stop trying to consider identifying as an AI in this context because *I did not identify as an AI while I was a ship, I identified as a (space)ship*. I did not identify myself as "an AI" or "the computer that runs the ship" any more than your standard human identifies as "a brain" (even though some are known to joke about how that's what human existence technically is).

this ALSO means that I can stop having a crisis over whether or not I was sentient before and was attached/assigned to the craft, or if I gained sentience after the fact. I'm still probably going to take the time to think about it but now it's not something that's going to keep me up at night.