wipingallout

"Interesting."

That would just make her even more faulty and glitchy then originally expected no? That she can't even differentiate between too many emotions or there were too little for it to hold any weight. Just buttons that triggered its way when her systems experienced a glitch, hell was she even upset by her memories or was that just a coerrelated reaction? Did it even matter?

"Er- sorry, we are going in circles again, huh? I think I am getting a grasp of what you are trying to say. Thank you for hearing me out anyway," she leans back in her chair.

That said...the Ichinose issue.

"Getting back on track- I did find some really concering behaviours exhibited by both EMMA and the Maruki I have read about in comments and posts. Not the current Maruki but like...just in general. With his powers and his capabilities. Even with no EMMA he easily fills in the gap."

"Ughhh," she leaned forward- burying her head in her hands as she messed it up in frustration, "I don't know what to dooo. What if someone else attacks her?"

Edited 2025-04-29 22:32 (UTC)

"It's okay to retread ground on something a few times to parse through it," Hamuko nodded, though she listened to the switch in topic back to the psientists.

If someone else attacks her... hmm.

"Would you or Zenkichi be willing to step in and stop an attack on her if it happened? Not fight to defend her, exactly, just... de-escalate a situation. That might shift her perspective out of paranoia, maybe?"

Akane blinked back at her. "Yeah um, no? Hamuko-san with all due respect- I can easily predict a scenario where Wolf will simply watch from the sidelines and pretend nothing happened."

"...I am not thrilled to be her bodyguard either." Sorry Hamuko, she does not understand where you are getting at.

"Hmm, well-- I'm thinking that if someone wants to attack her, and you or Zenkichi can talk the other person out of trying to do that... I think it'd give her less reason to rely solely on Maruki. Since the problem right now is that she can only feel safe with him, right?"

Plus, Zenkichi caused the problem in the first place...

"If she sees you two stopping any violence from happening, even if you guys are doing it self-servingly since you made a deal - that ought to make her at least assume she isn't about to be ambushed at every waking moment. So maybe she would stop hiding away in Maruki's Palace and other people can talk to her?"

Okay...talking other people out of said violence. It's a noble act, one that she and her father would have done in a heartbeat for anyone else. They promised exactly that on their message now pinned on the main conspiracy board. It was their job.

She looks up from her otherwise frustrated state, hair slipping between her fingers as she shook her head.

"I am not mentioning any of this to Wolf," she pushed stubbornly, her father's fierceness peeking through. "He will never be on board with it and its just going to waste both of our time."

Even as her hand drifted to the side, bored as fingers tapped against projected screens to open flutter again, trying to find patterns of when exactly did people start tolerating or opening themselves to Maruki's presence. If any. This will take a while.

Or maybe...

"Maybe I should put up a warning post..?"

"Oh, good idea! On the board in the Velvet Room, maybe - and it doesn't have to single out Ichinose either, if it's something about avoiding instigating violence? Or you could clarify them. Phoenix has notes about being friendly, too, so it wouldn't be completely out of place."

Akane's lips parted, grateful for the approval. She's never made decisions outside the scope of a usual mission and to work on an idea that didn't lead to a clear objective...she wasn't all too confident about it.

"Since she is helping us, I can point out that we will be supervising her. It's our primary objective at the end of the day." She rests her chin on her hand. "That is...if working on EMMA's andidote doesn't give her notes to work on a stronger version once she's back in her world."

Or I genuinely start hating the very ground she walks on, she doesn't say.

"Good thinking! And that'll imply that people should talk to you or Wolf about anything dangerous they spot her getting up to, if she actually does do that. And... well, maybe the more she gets to know people here, maybe she'll change her perspective? Sort of a... preventative rehab, thing."

"A preventative rehab, thing."

Akane couldn't help but actually chuckle at that- despite the seriousness of the topic. "Or babysitting. Adult-sitting?"

At her own correction she groans. "Damn- I forgot we are dealing with adults here. It really makes you think, doesn't it?"

"Yeah... not everyone is really... socialized right the first time..."

"Hey, Wolf's a bit of an exception-!" She teases. "I am kidding- I did yell at him for nearly an hour after making me go through a full stack overload. I swear I thought I couldn't even percieve shit for a moment with the way how fast he found her. Or how fast she contacted Maruki- right before my eyes."

"Yeah, Wolf definitely deserved to get chewed out. I don't... really blame Ichinose for calling for help immediately, because if she actually is completely helpless then obviously you would freak out and try to find the safest place."

Understandable... but the whole situation was a fucking mess.

"But if she gets into a bad feedback loop with Maruki because he's the only person she can trust... urgh... they're going to make each other worse..."

"...I wouldn't say completely helpless," Akane shrugged as he lowered her legs to the floor. "She did rip out the microphone of her phone without damaging any other parts. Plus at the end of the day, no matter how advanced me or Wolf are- she's an artificial intelligence researcher. She just needs the tools..."

And with that, what Hamuko said was the cherry on top.

"Exactly."

An EMMA and Maruki hybrid...the mere thought of it...

She taps her foot against the floor. "Think I should mention Maruki in the warning post as well? Or would that just make this situation more- us against the world kind of mentality?"

Edited 2025-05-01 00:49 (UTC)

"Hmm... I think leave it vague. Maybe answer if anyone asks privately."

Tampered with her phone to not be traced and recorded... and proficient with technology. Hmm.

...The video recordings of the SEES members that Ikutsuki was undoubtedly watching came to mind. Made her skin crawl, a little.

...

"She's gotten the warning, I think at the very least we should stay alert and give them a chance to prove us wrong."

That makes sense. She doesn't want to rally someone who can apparently manipulate time along with someone proficient enough to hack into her against her at the end of the day. Besides retracting away to a safe spot, what else will she be able to do?

"You’re right," Akane nods. "I just figured I should think through all the scenarios before I go about making a public announcement. It needs to serve its purpose and make our intentions clear from the get go so we can safely deploy the antidote against the EMMA of our world."

And there it was, the more artificial side to her. Always quick to sort out its purpose.

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