Scene #8640: Interview With A Robot

Owner	Pose
Angela	It is shortly after Halloween and Angela has sent word to Aya Shameimaru that she would like to talk to her privately because 'It's hard to have a real conversation in a crowd'. Angela has felt that keenly as of late in particular. She will greet Aya at Lobotomy Corp's Warpgate. It is located on the Control Floor--as is Angela's office--so there isn't going to be a lot of walking today. L-Corp is often busy whether it be due to them gathering the day's supply of Enkephalin, due to Abnormality breaches, or due to a building wide Meltdown and today's no different. While Control seems rather relaxed, there has been some trouble with the Big And Will Be Bad Wolf and many Agents are down in Central taking care of that--including Control's agents. Angela has been assured that the manager 'has got this' and so she isn't terribly concerned about what's going on downstairs. Angela greets Aya with her eyes closed. Unlike her 'TV' form, she looks significantly more humanlike than the 'chibi' version on the viewscreen but that doesn't mean she looks human. She is far too pale to pass for a human unless you explicitely look past that quality. She bows her head respectfully for reasons that may be made apparent. Aya may notice the faint smell of blood and disinfectant that never really quite leaves the facility. "Thank you for coming. Would you like to talk in my office or would you prefer a tour?"
Aya Shameimaru	It's innocuous statements like that that have quite a loaded meaning, but Aya doesn't really have much to lose; she herself is quite curious about the going-ons in L-Corp, even from as innocuous a Halloween party. It's still a bit unsettling to walk across the Warpgates -- too convenient, she thinks; conveniences tend to be set up for someone else's advantage. The ongoing bustle of the day seems to draw the tengu's attention, as she places her orange feather-fan to her lips. "Oh dear," she muses, wondering if that's the last she'll see of some of them. It does seem like a job with a lot of risks. She'll have to keep that in mind. And 'abnormalities'...? Once she steps into the office, it's with a little bow that she responds in turn, "A tour would be lovely, but I figured you were interested in something I had to describe, Miss Angela?" She's still wearing the long tengu robes, black and white, which make her look a lot more like a shugenja. She's not really sure why she's chosen the outfit given how sick of the Mountain she is, but perhaps being out in other worlds, she really feels the need to reassert her identity a bit firmer.
Angela	Angela hasn't set up a trap though--of course--that doesn't mean it couldn't have happened. Eggman once lured Hibiki into L-Corp and dropped a cage on Hibiki and Angela didn't even know how he got the cage up there to drop in the first place. Angela doesn't want to think about things that beg questions she doesn't want the answer to. Angela walks and looks back to Aya. "The Upper levels then. This is Control. The Agents here help dictate policy in how to deal with Abnormalities and are our first contact point for other worlds. It is headed by the manager Malkuth, whom you may have seen at the Halloween party." Something she had to describe... Angela hesitates before turning all the way around to face Aya once more. "I was interested in your work. ... ... And your writing. You are the first professional writer I've met."
Aya Shameimaru	Aya quietly and primly takes a seat in front of Angela's desk. "I admit, I've been curious about some of the terms used here at the Corporation. I take it that there's a very specific kind of being that classifies as an 'Abnormality', and that it's part of an Agent's daily duties to contain them?" She bobs her head to one side as Angela mentions that she's the first professional writer she's met, from which a look of mild surprise arises. "Is that true? I confess to not knowing much about your world, but there are many implications to how that might become the case. But I'd rather not guess. Does journalism not really exist here?"
Angela	Angela has never really been in The City so she's uncertain as to how present the occupation is in her world. "I can answer some questions, but I ... unfortunately cannot conduct an interview. If some elements were to get out about our work here, the Head would kill everyone in this facility." She thinks it's better to be safe than sorry on this matter. For what it's worth, she does seem strangely frustrated as well but she doesn't show that for long. "Yes. We harvest Enkephalin from them and use that Enkephalin to power the city." But she pauses on the second question and then nods. "That is correct. I was hoping for your advice, as ... ... I ..." She trails off. "...I am an amateur but, I thought one day it would be nice to write something?" ''Does journalism not really exist here?'' "I have never left this facility so I cannot provide a confident answer, I'm afraid."
Aya Shameimaru	Aya pauses for a moment at that comment, and how there's a figure above that would do anything to eliminate those who spill information outside of the facility. She suspected there was a situation like that, but that seems quite dire. She can play that way too. The tengu places her notebook and camera on Angela's desk and reclines gently, smiling. "Then, we won't call this an interview. I'm just chatting with someone I was hoping to know better. I'm a bit of a bird brain, you know; if I don't write it down, I'll soon forget it." She doesn't seem very nonplussed about the idea of threats lurking somewhere above, in the walls. "I see. So Abnormalities are contained and you harvest a necessary resource to power a city... I confess, I imagined differently." But Angela wants some advice. That it would be nice to write something. "... it was nice," Aya does confirm. Was? "I remember the first time I wrote an article. It wasn't even a newspaper then. I just wanted to write about something I saw that I enjoyed, and share it with others." She has a wistful tone as she says that, as if those innocent days are far gone. But Angela also adds something quite relevant: that she's never left the facility. "I see. So this facility is... your entire world, and you can only view the outside world through the-- screen, as I've seen you do at least once, when I met Shajo and Nonon?"
Angela	Angela wonders if she's (herself) a fucking idiot for a moment in talking to a journalist or even letting one anywhere near the facility. But there's really no difference in talking to Aya as there is talking to anyone else. She's had far more candid conversations than she's planning on having for a first meeting and nothing happened. This is in private, so... ''I'm a bit of a bird brain'' Angela is startled by the use of 'bird brain' and she takes a moment to steady herself. It's okay for a TENGU to say bird brain, she tells herself, but you better keep 'bird brain' thoughts inside yours. Was? Aya might have mentioned it was a 'Was' before but Angela's thoughts have been all over the place lately. "That is correct. Our only contact with the outside world is through our Agents. The other Sephirah have been Outside before, but they are presently confined to the facility as well as our Manager who is not strictly allowed to leave barring extreme and unlikely situations. That is how dangerous The Head can be to us."
Aya Shameimaru	Aya catches the way the phrase seems to change the air a little in Angela, but doesn't bring it up. It's an innocuous statement, so perhaps it twigged a personal memory, and she's not terribly interested in digging up anything that might just be damage. "I suppose I'll get nowhere by asking what 'The Head' is, whether they're a board of stakeholders, or something entirely more abstract," Aya chuckles with a squinted eye. "But I have to say, I didn't think this Corporation would seem so familiar, after I've heard you describe its state..." she idly reflects. "Rather, I'm more interested in you, Miss Angela. After all, you're the one in front of me, not the superiors that we have to worry above our heads." She sounds like she's also speaking from experience there. "If you were to write, what kind of topic would you be interested in? News? Travel? Food? Festivals and culture? Or perhaps reviewing books or other media you consume?"
Angela	Angela was raised by a corporation and sometimes it shows. "Ah, well, the truth is I do not know what the Head is." She is relieved to say this actually because it's not something she has to hide, it's just something she genuinely doesn't know. "Perhaps some day you can speak with Binah who may know more, though I would not suggest it." WARNING: Binah MAY know more but she's a sadist who only says unhelpful things. Angela's expression is one of mild distaste with the thought of it. Angela is asked what she would like to write about. Angela does say, "I like ... poetry," a little awkwardly. She has only really told Petra this before but now she's sharing this with someone else. "...I want to experience the worlds and write about them. I suppose ... while I am not writing about myself, exactly, it is still reflected by myself, perhaps? I did write one poem though right now I mostly wrote a list. I suppose that means I would be writing 'Travel'. Unfortunately, I cannot eat under most circumstances, so I do not imagine I would have much to say about food." This is a lie. Angela has a lot to say about food. She thinks about food a lot ever since Lilian has let her experience the sensation of consuming food. But it isn't a knowing lie. Angela has a lot of thoughts but she can't imagine that she'd have anything more interesting than someone who lives with food every day. "Have you written book reviews before, Aya?"
Aya Shameimaru	Binah... Aya will remember that name, as well as those of the other Sefirot, though right now, they're just a list of names to idly think about. "Poetry," Aya muses appreciatively. "Poetry is beautiful. Isn't it exciting, the way one can play with words? Words can range from being utterly perfunctory and clinical, to sensational and charged with emotion, to even restricted and beautiful." A pause, as she smiles a bit more quietly: "The 'Aya' in my name is written with the character for 'word'. I chose it because of that reason, long ago." But it's not just about words. It's about experiencing words and writing about them. She can't eat, but... "I suppose you could say I'm in the same step. After all, I'm just freshly starting to experience the wider multiverse, after escaping..." A pause. "After leaving my world." Book reviews? "There aren't actually that many books published in Gensokyo, but I've been involved in reviewing a book or two in my time. I wish that there were a larger printing and writing culture, but..." But Gensokyo is what it'll be, Aya thinks.
Angela	"You chose your name?" Angela asks. "Mine was given to me. My creator almost gave me a different name that would have been far worse but I find 'Angela' to be acceptable for the moment. I suppose I have not reflected on it as much as I could." She nods a little. It seems Gensokyo's collection is likely to not be too expansive in of itself. She feels it would be a bit crude to speak on the matter of the 'was' right now so instead she says, "It sounds as if Gensokyo is a relatively isolated community which may explain why the multivers has such a draw for it."
Aya Shameimaru	Aya quietly nods, smiling weakly. "Names didn't really hold much meaning for me for a long time, so I wasn't born with one." So Angela is a name given to her. "I think there's some importance in choosing a name, if you aren't happy with it, but..." A relatively isolated community? "Gensokyo is... a closed world where exiting into the Outside World is forbidden. Entering Gensokyo is often a one-way commitment for many," Aya explains quietly, then: "It is also a world where a human populace exists to generate power for the sustenance of its youkai creators." She bobs her head the other way to say, with that tired chuckle, "I couldn't help but draw some contrasts."
Angela	Angela wonders if anyone is born with a name. Usually it's something someone gives you ... right? ... She never asked the humans of the facility but she knows they tend oth ave parents and they speak about them occassionally and do even mention sometimes at having changed their names--or having their names changed. "I see... A familiar story. Not precisely a mimicry but...familiar." Angela looks over to the corner of her desk, where a teddy bear is sitting. Angela reaches out to take the bear and quietly pull it underneath her side of the desk. "I have met people from Gensokyo before I believe." Angela manages. "...Humans that exist to generate power for youkai..." Angela murmurs. "Fair is fair, I suppose, though Abnoralities ... they come from humans, even if they are clearly not strictly human, exactly." Importance in choosing a name, she thinks, what reason did he have for giving her the name Angela. Was she supposed to be a watchful savior?
Aya Shameimaru	A story is familiar not because they are identical, but because there are points of commonality that are tied to one another. Aya squints with one eye as she puts her fan slightly up again. "I might be inviting myself to the fire here, but the concept of an Abnormality sounds very close to that of us Youkai. After all, we were born from human fears and superstitions, and we cannot live without that same fear and superstition. That is why Gensokyo exists: as an escape from the toxin of common sense." She smiles somewhat sadly as she says, "Not many know about that facet of Gensokyo. But I felt the urge to compare and contrast."
Angela	"Certainly, some would say youkai are akin to Abnormalities." Angela says. "But 'Abnormality' is ultimately an approximate characterization. In truth what we seek are entities that we can draw Enkephalin from. Enkephalin can be drawn from humans, of course, but not in the numbers we require. Therefore we extract the Enkephalin from the Abnormalities." "But the vast, vast majority of the Abnormalities here are hazardous to the outside world." There's a small tell in Angela's left hand, the fingers curling inward but she doesn't comment on it. "I am essentially their Warden--or rather, the secretary to the Warden, though my responsibilities are larger than that of a typical secretary by my understanding." "Outside of one or two exceptions, we were able to contain them without incident but fortunately right now all Abnormalities are contained and accounted for." Barring two in particular but if Angela treats them as non-abnormalitie now, all is well!