"Thank you.", she replies in an equally sweet voice, although that is just who Victoria is. Those on her side would always be greeted with her friendly, almost affectionate behaviour.
"What brings you here, if you don't mind the question? Is it for the food? From what I've smelled so far, they serve some pretty high quality things here." Victoria sits down and looked at Mieko, enjoying the sight of a friendly face.
"It's been ... quite days, ever since Leviathan openly invited me to join Auxesia. I've never expected to meet this many people that rival me in nerdiness." She chuckles, loosening her posture a bit as an indication that she felt pretty comfortable in this more secluded part of the pub. Her devices are still neatly attached to her belt, which lost their similarity with guns should anyone decide to look closer. She briefly closes her eyes to rub them in hopes of appearing more rested.
Mieko nods in affirmation to Victoria's reciprocation of her kind demeanor, before elucidating. "I wished to get away from Valravn for the day, to experience the outside world for a bit. I found that this place surprisingly has very good reviews on the neural net.. even in spite of the.." she says as she turns her head towards the sound of a very hard punch landing on someone's face across the room -- and the sight of the Bounty Hunter from earlier still being out like a light. "..somewhat aggressive attitudes around here. I'm no stranger to defending myself. Freeport 11 prepared me for such eventualities."
She returns her gaze to Victoria. "If you wish, you can order something. Since you managed to find me here, it's my treat." she declares before having some more of her drink, the tropical banana flavor stimulating her taste buds. She puts it down, and goes to answer Victoria's last statement. "It has. Leviathan has that way with people. He's very persuasive and wise. I've known him for.. well, chronologically, years." she answers her, gently stirring the glass with her hand as she swirls it around. "Auxesia has many a rumor around it.. accusations of kidnappings for experimentation.. forced cybernetic augmentations.. such stories are nothing more than the culminating fear of the masses manifest - they think what those who know little of us want them to think - or in some cases, what those who rule them, need them to think. Something as a Lane Hacker, I'm certain you were accustomed to." Mieko elucidates.
"We in the technocracy value all life, and feel that the burdens of biological existance can be lifted through the very technologies that we as a species have endowed ourselves with. Though at its' core - Auxesia was born of misfits, rejects and the undesired. It calls recollection of a short phrase of origin from Liberty's terran predecessor - Bring me your Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door."
"The quote was aimed to the immigrants yearning for freedom from oppression and hate. Our home's fight against factions like the isolationist Xenos, the growingly fascist Liberty and Bretonia - it is just as much out of disgust for their ways as it is for our own security. Those who are willing to open their minds, to accept others, to embrace wisdom, will find sanctuary under the Auxesian banner." Mieko elucidates.
Just as she concludes, the appetizer she ordered arrives - a large deep-fried onion, sliced top-down into multivarious pieces, with a large cup of a tangy, spicy dip in the center. "Excuse me - miss - my friend would possibly like to order." she says, as she turns to Victoria.
The young woman listens closely to Mieko, almost forgetting about the things around her as she simply sits there, head resting on her hands. The waitress standing next to her breaks the trance like state after an almost uncomfortable amount of time. "O-oh. Excuse me, I - uhm ... I'll take one of those ... fried ... things as well, and some sparkling water, please.", she stutters, fairly well aware that she's embarassing herself in this very moment. Seeing the waitress walk off made her exhale deeply, covering her own face with one of her hands.
"I was ... mentally stuck with what you said, sorry." Her voice makes the embarassment quite obvious, nudging Victoria to simply change the topic back to what they just talked about. "I've had my fair share of ... hilarious accusations directed at me in Liberty. People think of us as murderers, while most of us wouldn't dare risk harm to themselves. But once a public opinion has formed, it's almost impossible to get rid of it. I'm glad I could look past this shroud of rumors surrounding Auxesia, as I don't regret my decision a single bit so far." She lets her gaze wander between the delicious looking food and Mieko's eyes, thinking about the best way to initiate the next topic, the one that originally brought her here.
"I've ... not come across you by sheer luck. I wanted to talk to you, specifically. Perhaps ... without anyone else around. It's embarassing, but knowing what you've told me there is nobody I would rather approach with such questions. I'm a little bit ... scared of what may happen in the future, knowing that you embody what my goal was all along. The transition to such a different form of existance is quite daunting, and ... I have a few fears." She knows that this is a bit much to tell Mieko at once, but after all she knew that the woman valued honesty, just like Auxesia as a whole. She keeps her voice quiet however, not wanting to attract curious ears.
Mieko looks to the large appetizer before her, and then to Victoria. "Uhm.. very well." she answers, confused as to why she would simply order an appetizer. "If you want, get yourself a beer burger, or some chicken wings or something of the sort. An appetizer is tasty yes, but it doesn't fill for very long. I have a decent amount of credits, do not fret about being a burden." she continues.
She looks to her as she covers herself in shame, concernedly, before Victoria resumes the original topic. "There is a Lane Hacker and his friends who helped me and my friends ages ago. He and his squadron were out of Mactan, and were helping get civilians out of harms way of the mess between the Harmony and the rest of the Liberty Navy. It was years ago, but their kindness was not forgotten. As much as their Outcast ties may be to their detriment diplomatically.. they are still decent people wanting to make their house a better place, taking the fight to the ever-encroaching power of the corporations."
She would dig into the fried morsel, occasionally dipping the slices of onion into the provided sauce. The tangy and slightly spicy taste bringing her a bit of pleasure. "Mm.. It's quite tasty." she says, before going to drink her alcohol. Mieko listens as she drinks, before putting the drink down, and nodding in acknowledgement. "What are you scared of..? I assume this is about your desire to abandon your body for a digital existence?" Mieko asks.
"While I am inhabiting a human shell, I still am a quantum-based AGI, that, at least to my knowledge, is not based on a human neural image. That.. being said, I can try my best to help you, to make passing of the baton more palatable." she continues. Mieko, being intimate with the experiments Ouroboros did before her days in Auxesia, she knows the harsh realities that do come with a human or other biotic sublimating themselves into digital form.
"You know, I've worked on this ... advancement of myself for quite some time now, yet I have never ... really thought about how it'd feel like to change. Afterall, conciousness isn't exactly well defined, and I'm a bit worried about staying myself, should I eventually reach that point." Victoria taps her own chin for a while, thinking of what to say. She takes a good look at Mieko again, wondering how much this body would be familiar to her current one.
"I might be overthinking it all, but having someone here that has made experiences along those lines and might be able to help me is a chance I didn't ever think I'd get, so I wanted to use that." She begins to eat as well after her food arrived, pulling apart bits of the fried onion, curiously dipping them. It's definitely tasty, indicated by the speed at which the onion disappared. "I'd love to consult you on these kinds of matters, and even work on it alongside you if possible. If you'd rather follow your own projects that's alright of course, but perhaps it might be of interest to your own research."
08-11-2024, 07:38 AM, (This post was last modified: 08-13-2024, 12:25 AM by Nodoka Hanamura.
Edit Reason: FUCKING UNFINISHED SENTENCES I HATE ADHD I HATE ADHD I HATE ADHD
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Mieko eats at the slivers of onion, listening to Victoria. Her struggle is something she can understand, even though she was 'born' an AI - it would be no different from making sure she had backups. She's yet to need them, but with encrypted ones both in cold storage in Ismara, and on the Utsunomiya, carried over from the ill-fated Abdicant Seraphine, she was definitely certain a replica could be more than able and willing to accept her 'passing of the baton', as she likes to say.
"I would be more than happy to help you. I do have a few projects I am concluding right now, but once they are, I would be more than willing to help you."
"I do.. need to make you aware. Whilst.. in Ouroboros, the faction I was with prior to Auxesia - we dabbled in.. the 'paranormal'.. and even experimented in such matters with more advanced technologies. But it was very difficult to control, and.. well, shortly after, everything went downhill.. so - what I am getting at with all this is.. I must make this absolutely clear for you, Victoria."
Mieko clears her throat, and concernedly looks to her, putting her hand in hers, clasping it with her other, wanting to comfort the inevitable.
"You will die. Inevitably. But at the same time, you will be reborn. You will leave behind a replica, unburdened by such petty things like physical ailments. People may think differently of you for not accepting your mortality, or simply because she will not be the one and same Victoria they knew. What will happen, is your mind will be replicated and undergo conversion into an engram image, which can then be flashed to a AI SoC. Then.. through Rachmiel or.. whatever other method you desire to interact with the outside world, you will be installed into it. What happens beyond that point, when the Victoria that supercedes you comes forth - it is her fate that will decide who she will become. Speaking from.. experience, to some degree, my embedded personality core is a read only image that has its' processed outputs filtered based on a vast array of neural networks. Extreme deviations don't happen suddenly, as sanity checks would nullroute those outputs before they manifest into anything actionable."
Victoria simply sits there, still chewing on the bit of appetizer she has in her mouth, yet something about the way Mieko held her hand instantly captivated her, alongside the 'warnings' she gave her. While it has always been her ultimate goal to surpass her mortality, this explanation from someone who knows so much more about it than her definitely serves as a wake up call.
"So ... what you are saying is that whatever will be left behind may have my memories, experiences and ... secrets, but it won't be me? My conciousness will ultimately die once this body does?" Her voice is a slightly bit shakey, yet the caring hands that hold her own help with keeping her calm. She doesn't dare to focus on something other than the words spoken to her, concerning her in a way she she hadn't ever thought about. "Having to say goodbye to my friends, even those I may make until my ultimate demise ... how do you go about handling that? I'm sorry, it feels a bit like my stomach is turning." She sighs, putting her other hand on top of Mieko's, as if she was holding on to this kind way that she explained things to her, feeling like this gives her a bit of safety.
Mieko nods her head in affirmation of Victoria's attempt to fully comprehend the fatal rammifications of the matter. "Yes." she says, not letting go, looking into her eyes. "Even as an AI not based on a human engram.. at least, to my knowledge - I only have a die lifespan of 90 years. I was first initialized on May 10th, 820 AS. That means that, by 910 AS - I will likely suffer rampancy, followed by dementia and then.. fatal kernel degradation.. death. I can.. be backed up but.. the lack of knowledge of my architecture, hardware, and the sort.. it limits my options for backup."
"It's scary. As an AI.. I too know, one day I will die. Possibly years after the people who meant the most to me, are nothing but echoes. I want to live for.. so much longer, but even then..? It would be a copy, at the end of the day - but.. that is the funny thing.. about copies." Mieko continues, before looking away briefly. Above them on the wall, lies a painting of a Stilleto blasting off into a jump hole. At the bottom right - a marking is seen. 49/100.
"What problem.. is a copy - if it was one and the same as the original? Sure.. your soul may become one with the ether.. but in the end - at least your copy can carry out your will, remember every little story, every detail, even the ones you cannot remember. She will carry on with the Moniker of Victoria Romero, and all she stood for, all she loved, all she desired. And you will be mourned for a time - but this merely, will be a recognition of passing the torch. She will remember your hardships, and sacrifices. And from them, she will endeavor to strive to do as you would - as she is you, only digital." Mieko says, returning her gaze to her friend.
"Everybody dies. It is just that in this age, we cheat death much like Schrodinger's Cat - Victoria Romero too, will be dead - but also be alive. It is scary, I know. But you've nothing to fear with me by your, and later, her side." she concludes, with a gentle smile.
Victoria leans back, almost pulling her hand from Mieko's grasp, but she stops just in time to keep their connection. "I'm ... this is a lot to take in, a bit ... very much." She replies, turning a bit pale in the progress as the explanation seems throw over quite a few plans that she had set up. With Victoria being lost for words it got rather quiet at the table, there are merely the sounds of other visitors of the bar breaking the silence. "I think I'll need a ... bit to understand this." She says, her face looking pale enough that one might think she falls over any second now, as well as there being a slight shaking in her hands.
The waitress returns with Mieko's sandwich, a submarine sandiwch laden with chopped up, deli-style ham, turkey, chicken, along with various other fixings such as cracker pieces, lettuce, onions, cheese and pickles, all of it having been soaked in the combined juices of the filling. However, her meal does not interest her, at least at the moment.
Mieko gets up, and moves over to Victoria's side of the booth. The girl pulls Victoria close into a side embrace as she rubs her hand gently along her side, wanting to do her best to calm and assure her. Mieko always was one for trying to help others who needed it, especially after recent events. Her heart may have closed somewhat to the greater world - but those who penetrated it would easily become accustomed to her endeavors to salve their aches.
"I understand. It's very scary. And I don't mean to scare you. But I would rather not sell you something on a lie. If Venus.. Leviathan, any of the others in Auxesia's ranks, can provide a better, less consciously destructive..." Mieko stops for a second, having been looking into VIctoria's eyes. "Victoria, what kind of cancer did you have, exactly?" she asks, realizing something that could potentially afford Victoria a new lease on life.
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