Part 6: Broken

For the first time in as long as he could remember, Faust found himself insisting that the marionettes listen to him and do as he told them.

"I know he has a sword," Faust said for what felt like the tenth time. "But you've seen him." He glanced over his shoulder, through the doorway to the formal meeting room. Obiichi was sitting there, kneeling on the floor in the Japoness fashion. "He walked here from Japoness, and I want to give him the courtesies he's used to." He swept a lock of blonde hair over his shoulder, then gave the marionettes a hard look. "That means you three will be sitting down while we talk." There was an awkward pause as he stared them down, each in turn.

Tiger was the first to lower her gaze. "If you say so, Faust-sama," she said. Faust wasn't surprised at that; she always had the easiest time obeying his orders, though he never liked having to give them. Luchs and Panther, though, looked ready to challenge him.

"You always say we can do what we want, Faust-sama," Panther said, curling her upper lip. "Why're you making us do this?"

"Call it diplomacy," Faust said dryly. "I know he's not an ambassador, but he might as well be for all the good talking to Ieyasu did. Besides, he looks like he has a lot on his mind, and I want to know what it is."

"Ah, so it's a ruse," Luchs said, and she gave Faust a familiar smile. She was thinking of something, he knew it, but he also knew better than to ask or try to stop her. "Very well, I'll sit."

Faust looked to Panther, who huffed. "Please?" he asked calmly.

"Fine," Panther muttered. "But if his hand gets anywhere near that sword, he's going through the wall."

Faust half-grinned at her. He regretted having to give orders that they didn't want to follow, but as for how they agreed, he didn't think it could be any other way.

He turned and strode into the meeting room, then lowered himself to the floor and sat a few feet across from Obiichi. The marionettes sat as well, Tiger and Luchs at Faust's right and left, Panther at Luchs's left, within easy range of the other man. Faust watched Obiichi's face, but his expression didn't change at all.

"I apologize for the wait," Faust said carefully. He was guessing it'd be better to start things off in the same way he'd talked to the Shogun, as Obiichi seemed even more formal. Faust hoped he'd relax with time. "Please, tell me why you've come so far."

"As I said," Obiichi began, "I wish to acquire a maiden chip, and I would ask for the services of your technicians as well." His voice was still tight and constrained, Faust noted; he seemed to be holding back a great deal.

"You've come a long way for just that," Faust said, starting to smile. Maybe, he thought, he should have had some saké brought in; something familiar might help Obiichi loosen his tongue. "I know that there haven't been any orders for the chipped marionettes from Japoness, but that shouldn't mean you couldn't get one."

"Forgive me, fuhrer, but that would have been less than adequate," Obiichi said. "My circumstances are unusual." His eyes left Faust's face, just for an instant, to glance toward the corner of the room, at the bag that he had carried with him. "Even if I was able to acquire the chip, I would still need a technician."

Faust sighed, and did his best to ignore the frown that Obiichi directed at him. "Obiichi. I can tell there's a lot you're not telling me." He leaned a little closer, and said, "With what you're asking for, I think you at least owe me the whole story."

Obiichi bowed his head. When he spoke again, his voice was quiet, as though coming from far away. "It was many years ago, but I remember it well. I was in Japoness's capital city, and I saw the woman I love through the window of a pawn shop.

"The man who owned the place told me that I would have difficulties with her, as she was an older model, but his words meant nothing to me. Surely, she and I were fated to meet that day. When I brought her home, I turned her on; she told me her name, and I told her mine. That was the beginning for Koyuki and I."

Obiichi paused, and looked Faust in the eye before continuing. "Of all men, I would expect you to understand. Marionettes are not simply tools, they are as alive as you or I. Most men in Japoness, if not all, do not see this way. Koyuki and I tried to make our own simple home, but we were ostracized wherever we went, often violently.

"I would expect you to be well-informed of happenings across Terra II, so you must know that the news of Gartlant's Maiden Chips was not well-received in Japoness. Popular opinion is still greatly against this country, and you would find few who would speak in favor of marionettes with emotions. When the news reached us, Koyuki and I found ourselves at the heart of a brutal protest. There were some who believed that I had acquired a Maiden Chip for her."

Faust had started frowning a while ago, but he bowed his head at hearing that. He hadn't thought that he would be doing any harm with the Maiden Chip Project, especially to someone who felt the same way about marionettes that he did. "I am sorry," he said quietly, as he had already guessed how this story would end.

Obiichi continued, giving no sign that he had heard Faust. "As time went by, the crowds grew more violent. A week ago, we attempted to escape during the night. There were those fanatical enough to keep watch, and they gave chase.

"During our flight, Koyuki and I were set upon by those who see differently than I do, and she was killed."

Faust drew in his breath sharply, and narrowed his eyes. This was just the kind of thing he'd been hoping to avoid. The entire purpose behind having the marionettes become more visible to the public was to make them seem more human, and to hear that things like this were happening. . . . Even if it wasn't in Gartlant, it was a tragedy. If it had happened here, he thought, he would have had the men arrested and thrown in jail, with the same punishment for killing another man.

"I have carried her here with me," Obiichi said, his voice quiet again. "If I must, I will beg for your help." He leaned forward, and bowed until his forehead touched the floor. Somehow, Faust thought, he did it without losing his quiet dignity. "Fuhrer Faust of Gartlant, you have given Terra II a miracle with the creation of the Maiden Chip. Please, help me to restore Koyuki to life, and grant her the chip. Even if only for a moment, I want to see her smile."

"Granted," Faust said without hesitation. He smiled as Obiichi raised his head, a surprised expression on his face. "Soemon Obiichi," he said, letting himself drop into the tone of voice that he used for making speeches, "you are the kind of man I had in mind when I first thought of making the Maiden Chip. Come." He stood, then held out his hand and helped Obiichi to his feet. "Let's go down to Hess's lab, and we'll see what he can do for you."

"Forgive me, fuhrer, but I am surprised at your generosity," Obiichi said. His expression had returned to calm and stoic, but Faust could hear that the other man was fighting off disbelief. "You would simply give me a Maiden Chip?"

"You shouldn't doubt Faust-sama," Tiger said, a hint of laughter in her voice. "He's never been shy about favoring those who agree with him."

"You make it sound like I'm a pushover," Faust said, giving Tiger an irate look. She smiled back at him, completely unashamed.

"Not at all, Faust-sama," Luchs said from his left. "But anyone could see that you'd give him what he wanted." She tilted her head slightly as he looked at her, and he caught a rare glimpse of her eyes. There was caring there, he thought, and not only for him. "He's a little like you."

"Your marionettes speak well of you, and prove your own words," Obiichi said. "If you are willing to help me, then please. . . ." He bowed his head again. "I would like to see Koyuki again as soon as possible."

Faust nodded. "Then let's go talk to Hess."

Faust stepped out of the elevator and into the dim expanse of Hess's lab. The three marionettes fell into step at his side, and Obiichi stood a step behind them, his expression unreadable. He again carried the bag he'd brought with him from Japoness. Now that he knew what was in it, Faust found himself reluctant to actually see inside. If the people who'd attacked Obiichi had done enough damage to Koyuki for her to fit into a bag only half the size of the man carrying it, her remains couldn't be in good shape.

Despite Faust's urgings to have some decent lighting installed in the lab, Hess still insisted on keeping the place halfway in the dark. Whether that was for atmosphere or just so it would allow Hess to make his standard appearances out of the shadow, Faust wasn't sure. At least he knew that there weren't any more machines of war built here.

"Hess!" Faust called.

"Yes, fuhrer?" Hess asked, stepping out of the darkness a few feet away.

Faust whipped around and glared at him. "First, stop doing that. Second, I have a job for you." He held a hand out, gesturing for Obiichi to step forward. "This is Soemon Obiichi, from Japoness. I want you to repair his marionette and give her a maiden chip."

"Very well," Hess said, then paused. He seemed to be looking around, but Faust couldn't see his eyes to be sure. "Obiichi, I'll need you to bring your marionette down here."

"She is here," Obiichi said tersely, and gestured to the bag he wore.

Hess paused. Faust gave him a curious look. That, he thought, was something new - he wasn't sure how old Hess was, but the man had worked for Faust IX, and possibly Faust VIII before that. Hess must have seen a great deal in his lifetime, so for something to give him pause, it must be worse than Faust had thought.

"I see," Hess said. "Follow me." He headed off toward the back of the lab, where Faust knew he kept the facilities for working with marionettes. Obiichi followed without a word.

Faust turned to the marionettes, about to ask if they were ready to leave, but paused when he saw that all three of them were watching Obiichi walk away. He frowned. There was something strangely upsetting about them looking at someone else, especially when they were with him. He cleared his throat, and said, "We should leave them. Obiichi probably has--"

"Faust-sama," Tiger said quietly, looking up at him. "I - I want to see what happened to his marionette."

Faust drew back, surprised at the look in her eyes. He hadn't seen her that sad since before Faust IX had died, since she'd had to worry about being punished for doing what she felt she had to do. "Tiger?"

"I'm not really sure," Tiger said quietly, "but something. . . ." She put a hand over where her heart would be. "Something doesn't feel right about leaving her without seeing what they did to her."

"But you'll see her once she's repaired," Faust said. "I'm sure Hess can fix her, he could probably do it in his sleep." He started to feel uncomfortable, though he wasn't sure why.

"I want to see her too, Faust-sama," Panther said, giving Faust a hard look. "We're supposed to be stopping things like this, right? That's why you made the chips."

"Part of it," Luchs added. "Not all of it, of course." She gave Faust another of her less-than-innocent smiles, but quickly grew serious. "I agree with Tiger and Panther, though, Faust-sama. I can't explain it, but . . . we should see her."

Faced with a united front, Faust sighed, then nodded. "All right," he said, "we'll see what happened to Koyuki."

He walked with them to the marionette facilities, and they moved ahead of him to gather around the pod where Hess and Obiichi stood. Faust looked over their shoulders, and grimaced when he saw what was left of Koyuki.

He could hardly tell that the pile of parts and casing had once been a marionette. There were pieces that might have been hands and feet, but the body was little more than broken machinery. There were parts that Obiichi had wrapped in a silken garment, legs and arms as far as Faust could tell, but it was difficult to be sure. The head was in two pieces, and the area around the right eye had been crushed in, making the marionette look as though she'd been badly beaten. The remaining eye was closed, and Faust was sure that Obiichi had done that himself.

Faust looked closer, and saw small drops of blood, both on the silk wrappings and on the marionette's remains. It seemed that Obiichi's attackers had not gotten away unscathed, and Faust didn't doubt that the man had fought all the harder once the one he loved had been struck down.

Around the pod, Faust's three marionettes stared down at the broken marionette. Tiger was holding her hands to her mouth, and looked as though she wanted to cry. She clutched Faust's arm, and turned away. Panther's lip was starting to curl, and Faust wondered if she was going to spit. Luchs seemed to be taking a closer look, as her eyes were glowing blue behind her bangs, but she was frowning.

"How long will it take to fix her?" Obiichi asked after a moment of silence.

Luchs's eyes went dark, and she glanced over at Faust, tilting her head so her eyes were visible. Faust looked at her and saw the answer to Obiichi's question. He remained silent. This, he thought, was going to be difficult.

"There might not be anything I can do," Hess said. He untied the silk garment, and the parts spilled into the pod, scattering themselves around it. "How long has it been since this happened?"

"A week," Obiichi said stiffly.

Hess peered closer at the marionette's head, then reached down and turned it so that the neck connections were pointing toward the ceiling. "The damage may be too great. Even if I can put her back together, she'll never be the same, and her memory will be gone. If you want, we could find her model, and have another of the same made--"

"Are you saying that she's dead?" Obiichi said, his fists clenched at his sides. He looked as though he was about to jump at Hess.

"He's telling you the truth," Luchs said calmly, "there's not enough of her left to put her back together." Obiichi turned to look at her. She paused. "I'm sorry."

She meant it, Faust thought, he could tell. He'd grown so used to she and the others showing emotion, but for someone like Obiichi, it must be staggering. He looked at Obiichi, and saw pain in the other man's eyes. After a moment, Obiichi bowed his head, then turned and knelt at the side of the pod.

"Koyuki," he whispered, "please forgive me. I failed you."

"It's not your fault someone was an ass," Panther said, still grimacing. She pointed at the blood drops on the broken marionette's limbs. "Besides, it looks like you gave what you got."

"I did all that I could, and it was not enough," Obiichi said without raising his head. "Fuhrer Faust, I thank you for your generosity, but I am not worthy of a marionette with a Maiden Chip." He stood, holding himself upright, then bowed to Faust and the marionettes in turn. "I have taken too much of your time, and so I must leave. Please, give me time to gather Koyuki, so I may give her a proper burial."

"Obiichi," Faust said, holding out his hand. The other man hesitated, and Faust thought quickly. He had an idea, one that just might work, but he had to find a way to keep Obiichi around for a day or two. "You've come a long way," he said. "You're welcome to stay here tonight, so you can rest. If you want to leave tomorrow, that's fine, but there's something I want to look into first."

Obiichi gave Faust a cautious look. "Again, thank you," he said, "but if you have something to tell me, I ask that you do so now."

"As soon as I can," Faust said with half a smile. "I just need to talk to somebody first."

Tiger raised her head, and asked, "Who, Faust-sama?"

"Nobody who'll be glad to hear from me," Faust said. The other half of his smile made its way onto his face. "Shogun Ieyasu."

On the evening of the next day, Faust sat down to a traditional Japoness-style dinner with Obiichi and explained the situation.

"Shogun Ieyasu refuses to speak with me," Faust said, trying to get comfortable while sitting on his knees. "His aide says that the shogun has nothing to say to me, and that any proposed treaties can go through the appropriate people." Faust rolled his eyes. "Only six leaders on this entire planet, and one won't talk to me."

Obiichi nodded, then picked up his chopsticks and his bowl of rice. "I see," he said. "You still have not told me how this concerns myself or Koyuki, fuhrer."

Faust nodded, and reached for his own chopsticks. "I know," he said. "That's why I had Tiger, Luchs, and Panther leave us alone for this meal." He paused, and watched Obiichi's expression carefully. "I don't know how well they'd take the news that there are others like them."

Obiichi brought a bite of rice to his mouth, and seemed to be considering carefully while he chewed. After swallowing, he asked, "I presume this is what you wished to ask the shogun about, and this is why you wanted me to stay?"

"Something like that," Faust said. He took his chopsticks between his fingers, and attempted to pick up some rice. Three failed tries later, he continued talking. "Shogun Ieyasu and I have only talked once, and it didn't end well. He said I was a fool for creating the Maiden Chips, that the Circuits they come from aren't toys." He shook his head. "For a leader of Japoness, he seems kind of short-sighted."

"Many people have trouble adjusting to different ways of seeing things," Obiichi said calmly. "But I must ask - what did you mean by 'circuits'?"

"Maiden Circuits," Faust said. "They're what make Tiger, Luchs, and Panther the way they are. I had Hess and some of the other scientists analyze the Maiden Circuits and find a way to replicate the emotions, so that normal marionettes could have something of the same thing. Before Ieyasu cut off our talk, he let it slip that Japoness also has three marionettes with Maiden Circuits." Faust reached for his rice again, paused, then set down the chopsticks and picked up a fork. "He said that if he knew anyone who was willing to look at marionettes differently, possibly as something more than tools, then he would have that person meet the Japoness marionettes."

Faust let that hang for a moment, giving Obiichi time to consider. He was thinking about it, Faust could tell that much - the other man kept his emotions in check most of the time, but Faust could see the struggle behind his half-closed eyes.

"You would bring me back to Japoness," Obiichi said plainly, "to meet these marionettes."

"That was the idea," Faust admitted.

Obiichi bowed his head. "The day after my Koyuki's burial, you would ask me to consider others."

Faust started to frown, and would have kicked himself if he'd been able to. How, he wondered, could he have thought otherwise? Would he so quickly have sought out other marionettes if something happened to his three? The very thought of losing them sent a chill through him, and he found himself surprised by his own reaction. He had become so used to having them around - he literally didn't know of life without Tiger - that he'd never thought about what would happen if they were somehow . . . killed. Yes, he thought, that was the right word. If they could not be repaired, as Koyuki couldn't, then they would truly be dead, not just broken.

Faust sighed. Perhaps, he thought, there were areas of diplomacy that he needed to spend more time learning, or perhaps he just needed to think of how the other person might feel in a situation like this. "Forgive me, Obiichi. It was the first thing I thought of, so I thought it would be best to tell you about it."

Obiichi was quiet for a long moment, and when he raised his head, his eyes were open more than usual. "Not all men," he said quietly, "would do what they think is best and then give an honest apology. You have done well by me, fuhrer Faust, so I will consider your offer. I would ask you for time - a week, perhaps."

"Done," Faust said with a nod. He managed a smile, glad that things had turned out at least a little better. "You'll be welcome here, as a guest, for as long as you want."