maskormenace | (1) Voice

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(1) Voice

[There’s a few minutes of unsure tapping on the communicator’s microphone, accompanied by some quiet mumbling about radio frequencies. A voice with a Chicagoan accent that is just faintly reminiscent of Humphrey Bogart finally makes itself audible.]

Been a long time since I’ve seen one of these. Hope I’m not accidentally talking through somebody’s refrigerator.

Anyway, good afternoon, to everybody listening. Nick Valentine here. Nice to meet all my fellow "Imports," I guess, is what they're calling us. Figured I should get used to the broadcasting life, since that's what they've hired me to do. I always thought I had a face for radio.

[The slightest of pauses while he gathers his thoughts.]

I’ve been to a couple of hardware stores now and I think it’s time to swallow my pride and just ask. You folks wouldn’t happen to make Assaultron circuit boards yet, would you? Anything with titanium wiring and rad-guard circuits would work, though. My last diagnostics didn't look so good and I'd rather fix it before it gets too out-of-hand.

I’m starting to get the suspicion I’m out of luck on that one.

While I’m on the subject, though, anybody know a good mechanic? I’m not half bad myself, but I could probably use a primer on all this old tech. Don’t want to end up turning into a toaster or anything.

Give me a ring if you’ve got anything for me. Thanks, and... hm. I'd better come up with a catchy sign-off, pretty quick here.

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Why? Near as I can tell, because they're a bunch of goons with too much science and not enough ethics.

[It's a much different situation where Nick comes from, of course, but he does feel strongly on these topics. With what would pass for a breath in a person, he tries to go into more detail.]

There's robot laborers and workers, sure, but they're not like us. They're not sentient, like us. The older synths before me are the same way-- just programs. No thoughts of their own.

Now, for some reason, they decided to try giving the next line personalities. I can't remember for sure, but I imagine that's what they were trying to do with me-- sticking a human consciousness on a machine. Grabbed some leftover memory files from some poor bastard and copied 'em into my head.

So starting with whatever I am, synths are just as smart and free-thinking and personable as any human. Lot of 'em don't even realize they're synths.

["Why" is a great question. One the whole Commonwealth has been wrestling with regarding the Institute for a long time now.]

The Institute who makes us seem to have a lot of problems stickin' to any kind of ethics. Progress, at any cost. I imagine somebody asked one day whether or not they could create sentience, so they tried it. And they did it.

And now the world is trying to catch up, and catching a lot of innocent people in the mess in the middle-- humans and synths both.

That sounds difficult. I've always been lucky enough to have a friend around willing to find someone to fix me. Hopefully you'll at least find regular maintenance here.

Like that back home?

[He will never admit how cool that sounded tbh]

Not where I'm from [HE WISHES]

A... toaster?

Why are you talking about circuits and mechanics?

Because I'm asking about 'em, that's why.

[His tone is more amused than it is sarcastic or defensive. He does like stringing people along, a bit...

Or robots, from the looks of this guy.]

[His expression sort of falters.]

Oh.

Do you... need toasters?

Well, I like breakfast as much as the next guy. But I'd rather not ascend to toasterhood myself, if you know what I mean.

[He clearly doesn't, Nick, you troll.]

I don't understand what that means.

[Kagerou why do you even talk.]

[A gentle laugh. Well. As gentle as it gets for such a HUGE TROLL.]

I'm a machine, pal.

I don't actually think I could screw up enough to become a toaster, but you never know.

[There's his expression picking right back up again.]

You are?

You're an AI too?

[Once again, Nick spares a mental middle finger to the Institute for creating such a headache of an existence for him to have to explain ]

Depends on your definition of AI, I guess.

But yes, I am a synth. Or "android," I've heard people use.

A machine with feelings. That's... what they told me I was.

I haven't heard those other words before.

Y'know, I like that phrasing. "A machine with feelings." I think that describes people like us pretty well.

The rest is all just details and nitpicking.

Does that happen? To you? People nitpicking you?

Folks are a little uneasy about synths back home. Most of 'em aren't as obvious as I am. Some people appreciate that, and others think it's a license to crack wise at me.

[ There's a series of emotions that plays on her face as she listens to what Nick has to say. It ranges from sympathy to resentment to understanding to longing. Maeve could only wish she was as free from her programming as Nick and his fellow synths. ]

Because they can, so they do. At least your world seemed to have a sort of purpose for you -- putting you out in the real world. Mine? I'm part of an elaborate theme park where people pay an exorbitant amount of money to kill, fuck, or otherwise harm my kind. So ours is not the true wild west, but a version of it for people to play in. And when we're killed or damaged, the technicians swoop in, patch us up, erase our memories and dump us back as though none of it ever happened.

So I certainly agree that a good number of our human creators do have too much science and not enough ethics.

[ Her expression softens. ]

But how do you know you're free-thinking? I thought I was, too. Until one of the technicians showed me that everything I say are things I've been programmed to say.

[So where she comes from, synths are straight-up entertainment. The Commonwealth hasn't gone quite that far yet-- probably because the Institute is too underground and people hate them too much to ever give a thing like that a chance. But it sounds degrading as hell, especially recalling that she works in a brothel.

Nick's expression is as gentle and sympathetic as he can get it, given its limited range of... well. Expression.]

I don't know that I am free-thinking, really. I'm a man's memories encoded into a machine. Everything I am started with somebody else.

So who can really say what "free-thinking" is, when it comes to people like us?

Who's to say what it means at all? I've met plenty of people I wouldn't call "free-thinkers," even if their brains are organic.

[He offers her the slightest of sighs.]

It's a lot bigger a concept than just being mechanical or not, Miss. I've been around a long time like this, and I still don't know how I feel about a lot of it.

I suppose I am asking the difficult questions. Maybe you're right in that there's no good answer. Maybe I'm simply overthinking things....if thinking is what we do at all. But all that said -- it is nice to meet someone similar. Someone who is aware of what they are.

[ Because Maeve has Teddy here, but Teddy does not know he's a robot. He doesn't even have the capacity to know. ]

It does become a bit daunting walking among the humans and pretending to fit into their world.

[ A pause. ]

But at the same time, I think you'll find this world to be a bit more liberating than your own.

Hey, it's not an easy thing to wrap your head around, and even worse if you've got nobody to talk to. God knows I don't get to talk to others who understand all that often, either.

If you ever need an ear to listen, or an empathetic shoulder, you just let me know.

[If there's one thing Nick doesn't need to worry about, it's fitting in with humans. ~~Until he figures out those powers of his, oops.~~]

Maybe you'd like to meet up in person some time. I could always use a tour from somebody who's more familiar with the geography around here.

... They hate AI where I was made. We're nothing but tools to them.

It's good. That some appreciated you.

Well. It's more like they appreciate the fact I'm obviously a synth. Some of the others look just like humans, and that freaks 'em out.

Sounds like our type aren't very popular anywhere, from what I've heard.

You... can look human?

No. It doesn't sound that way.

Not me. Not even close. But the newer versions of synths are basically human with a few extra microchips.

Well, more's the pity then. From the sounds of it, this place is a lot more tolerant of oddities. I've heard they're pretty relaxed about folks like us.

Newer versions?

They... seem to be, yes. Some of them.

I believe that would be an agreeable arrangement.

[ Maeve doesn't have any qualms about being seen with him. Perhaps if they were home and she was trying to blend in, she would not want to walk around with someone looking like Nick Valentine. But in this world of imPorts and unusual beings -- it's not entirely out of the ordinary to have someone who stands out the way he does. ]

I've little going on now. Can't say what my plans will be later, though. So now could very well be your only chance.

[ She teases. ]

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