A/N: Either the Fanfiction alerts are off line again, or I have somehow managed to accidentally disable mine. As a result, I did not receive any alerts when reviews for the last chapter were posted. I did my best to review, via PM, to all non-anonymous reviews I received but, if I missed anyone, I apologize. This apology extends to anyone who reviewed one of my other tales and did not receive a PM in thanks.
That said, on with this week's offering...
Why was he even here?
Okay, he knew the answer; it was because despite everything that had happened...and everything that hadn't happened between the two of them, he just couldn't say no to her. She had made it clear to him that they were just friends, that no matter what, she wouldn't see him as anything more. He'd like to say that he was here, with her right now, out of friendship but it wasn't the case. Somehow, she still had some spell on him and what made it worse was that she never actually tried to put a spell on him. In fact, she had tried to make him immune from any such spell by being up front and telling him that they were just friends. Instead, he was willing to do anything for her and it wasn't just because they were friends.
He was in love with her and he just couldn't help it.
It was amazing the number of favors she could call in, and the broad range of skill sets she could draw upon. They were sitting in a conference room in the Middleton Space Center. After she had kept Fiske from doing some horrid things to the kids, and to Frederick, when the monkey man was trying to get to space, the director was all too happy to let her use one of their ultra-secure rooms to have this discussion. Joining the two of them were Dr. Porter, Dr. Freeman, Dr. Director, a lawyer who's name he couldn't remember and, oddly enough, Rabbi Katz.
"Are we ready to begin?" Kim asked the room at large. Nods answered her. "Okay, Doctors Porter and Freeman, I asked you to review the interviews and documents from Drakken's laboratories. What can you tell the rest of us?"
The two doctors shared a glance, then a nod. Dr. Porter addressed everyone else.
"I'll take the lead on this one," she said. "Dr. Freeman will interrupt if he has something to add. Now, I understand that not all of you have an in-depth understanding of artificial intelligence. Let me give you a layman's description. At it's basic level, all form of interpersonal interactions come down to doing what it takes to accomplish your goals. For example, let's say that your goal in life is to please your mother. Whenever your room is dirty, your mother gets angry, so you learn that she is happier when you clean it. You've just learned to make your mother happy by cleaning your room. Then, you realize that she's happier if you never let it get dirty in the first place, so you keep it tidy. You've just learned that your mother isn't happy when you clean your room, she's happy when your room is clean, so you've learned more about keeping your mother happy."
"As time goes on, you learn to anticipate what makes her happy," Dr. Porter continued. "Perhaps it's behaving yourself, excelling in academics or sports, impressing your clergyman or showing proper manners to her friends. You've learned, most likely through trial and error, what will please her. You are anticipating...predicting her reactions based upon prior experience."
"There are two more steps," she concluded. "The first is the ability to prioritize your mother's approval with your own needs. For example, you are desperately hungry, yet your room is not tidy. What is more important, cleaning your room or eating? Finally, there is questioning the reason you are trying to please your mother. For example, you realize that committing a crime will please your mother, but is it the right thing to do?"
Dr. Porter paused, looking at everyone gathered in the room. Ron honestly didn't know where she got her sense of drama. "This is where Eric is at. at this moment," the blonde doctor finally stated. "He started out determined to please his creator, Drew Lipsky. The method to do so was to do what he had been designed, built and programmed to do, charm Kim Possible and take her mind off of fighting crime."
"I'm going to interrupt at this point," Dr. Director said. "How could Mr. Lipsky program Eric to even function as an independent teenager, much less pursue a romantic relationship, in such a short time? The variables present for such interactions are...almost infinite. Was there a person observing and controlling him?"
"From what we've managed to decipher from his notes, Lipsky made use of a self-learning program and subjected Eric's AI with multiple sources of interpersonal relationships, simultaneously." Dr. Porter answered.
"That statement really doesn't mean anything to me," Dr. Director told her. Ron was glad, as he had been left in the dark, as well.
"Put bluntly, Lipsky obtained footage of teenagers interacting with each other and with adults, from multiple sources," Dr. Porter answered. "He both pirated existing cameras, such as webcams and security cameras, and placed numerous systems, himself. Schools, malls, theaters, music concerts, parks, even residential neighborhoods, he recorded teens' interactions and had subjected the AI to them. In layman's terms, Eric spent several weeks obtaining months' worth of relationship experience, every day. Thus, by the time Lipsky released his creation from the lab, instead of having only a vague idea on how to relate to teenagers, teachers and other adults, Eric actually had the social experience of someone in their late twenties."
Dr. Director nodded, indicating that the younger doctor had answered her question.
"This...may be embarrassing to Kim," Dr. Porter then stated.
"It'll come out eventually," Kim sighed. "I might as well start dealing with it now."
"Mr. Lipsky placed Kim under intense surveillance," the blonde doctor continued with her report, offering Kim a look that was both apologetic and sympathetic. "Of course, he had been doing so for a couple of years, but not with the same focus as he utilized for this latest plot. To a certain extent, it was easy for him; Kim is a celebrity and it isn't unusual for the media to show clips of her going about her daily life. However, Lipsky again pirated existing video and audio feeds, as well as set up some on his own. He emphasized the sites where he knew she would be, such as the sporting venues where she would be a cheerleader. He then triangulated her focus of attention, concentrating on where her gaze lingered, the subject of her double-takes, looking for what she found attractive in a young man."
Kim was blushing furiously, unable to meet anyone's gaze.
"I'd interrupt and say that you shouldn't be embarrassed, Kim," Dr. Director told the younger woman. "But I don't think it would do any good. I'll say that I was no different than you, at your age. Still, this is something that has to be finished."
"Let's keep going," Kim managed to say, in a weak voice.
"Using both conventional standards of attractiveness and Kim's specific preferences, Lipsky created Eric's form," Porter told them. "He then made sure that Eric understood that his purpose for existing, his goal in life, was to gain and keep Kim's attention. Eric had, in effect, years of experience in interpersonal relationships and was equipped with physical characteristics that were sure to cover for any personality shortcomings."
The blonde doctor offered a slight grin. "It's a popular movie plot because it's true. When a physically beautiful person acts in a questionable manner, it's being quirky. When someone without physical beauty does so, it's being offensive. For this reason, Eric was able to be very forward in showing his interest in Kim."
Again, Kim struggled to keep her eyes up.
"However, we come into Eric's ability to alter his behavior to match the changing situation," Porter continued, saving Kim from more embarrassment. "While the reason he had this flexibility was to maintain Kim's interest, this flexibility came to turn on Lipsky. Eric first came to admire Kim, to fall in love with her, if you will. However, he was also being influenced by her. He saw her risking her own life on her missions for the common good. Then, there was the vice principal at Middleton High."
"Mr. B?" Kim and Ron asked, shocked, at the same time.
"I freely admit that he is an odd one," Dr. Porter made no effort to hide her smile at this. "But he had an influence on Eric, as well."
"But...Eric did the right thing," Kim protested.
"Your criticism of your teacher is understandable," Dr. Freeman chimed in. "Yet, in the end, he has a good attitude towards life. What he strove to teach was his version of how a society is supposed to function. Yes, he has a very narrow view of how people are supposed to behave, but he is, at the end, willing to defend an individual's right to not follow this path, as long as this individual doesn't harm others. Eric picked up on these lessons and this formed a chain of reasoning. First, he sought Kim's affection. In doing so, he learned respect and admiration for her, since this conflicted with Lipsky's instructions to manipulate her, he reconsidered his mission and realized that it was morally wrong. However, he was unable to bring himself to act until he was faced with attacking Kim directly."
"At his instruction, we examined his construction," Dr. Porter took up the tale again. "Eric was capable of generating a very powerful electrical discharge. According to him, after Kim defeated Shego at Bueno Nacho headquarters, she moved to embrace him. Had that happened, he could have easily incapacitated her with such a discharge."
"Mr. Stoppable, you are a formidable asset, who has improved himself greatly in the last several months," Dr. Director stated. "But had Kim been incapacitated, you would have found yourself facing a fully capable synthodrone, as well as Shego. Shego recovered very quickly...I don't think that you could have prevailed."
Ron could only offer a nod.
"And this is where we are with Eric," Dr. Freeman addressed the entire room. "He was, quite literally, designed and built to serve Lipsky's will. He realized that this course of action was wrong and defied everything he had ever known in order to do what he considered to be the right thing. We are fortunate that what he considered correct lines up with what all of us believe to be right."
"So, he'll be released?" Kim asked.
There were a round of odd looks directed Kim's way.
"Why are you so determined to secure the Synthodrone's release?" Dr. Director asked her.
"Because he didn't do anything wrong!" Kim snapped at her. "Isn't that justice, releasing someone who hasn't actually broken a law?"
"Kim, holding Eric isn't a violation of anyone's rights," Dr. Director told her. "Eric isn't a person, it's a machine, something that obeys it's programming. It cannot have rights to violate, keeping Eric in custody is like putting a toaster in a cabinet."
"I would hardly consider that accurate," Dr. Freeman looked sternly at Dr. Director. "Eric was able to come to a conclusion of wrongdoing, all on his own. Does that sound like a simple machine?"
"I'll admit that there could be a certain sophistication..." Dr. Director confessed. "But still..."
"I programmed my car, SADI, to be able to transport me," Dr. Freeman continued. "Eric has a greater ability to adapt and change than she does, but she developed her own personality, even seeking out Kim to rescue me when Lipsky kidnapped me. Beyond that, she developed a fondness for Kim. This goes well beyond simple meeting a task, it's a developed personality. I challenge you to spend a few hours conversing with her and then say that she is just a thing."
"The same with Oliver," Dr. Porter added. "I originally built and programmed him to act protective towards me and help me overcome certain stereotypes. He's gone beyond that, he reacts to damage as if it's pain, he's learned when to perform his programmed tasks and when to let me interact with others." She looked at the two teens. "Neither of you would have guessed that he wasn't biological if it wasn't for that magnet. Like SADI, Oliver isn't as sophisticated as Eric. In Eric's case, nobody would have suspected that he wasn't biological if he didn't mention it; and he only mentioned it because it was the right thing for him to do. Eric isn't a thing."
"I suspect that your perspectives have been compromised," Dr. Director chided the two other doctors in the room. "The two of you have constructed and own such units, so you are attributing qualities that don't exist to this...thing."
"I would like to comment, if I could," Rabbi Katz prevented the two doctors from arguing with Dr. Director.
"Gladly," Dr. Director nodded.
"I took the opportunity to review the interviews that both Doctors Porter and Freeman conducted with Eric," the rabbi announced. "I freely admit that I'm not approaching this from a technical standpoint, but from a moral and religious one. First of all, Eric has not harmed anyone; even when given the opportunity to harm Kimberly, he stepped back. Secondly, he is currently in custody due to his own admission and request. That tells me he has a sense of morals, he does the right thing."
"Are you suggesting that it has rights?" Dr. Director looked shocked.
"That's a legal issue, not a moral issue," the rabbi told her. "But I have to ask, what benefit could it have been to him to admit to being constructed?"
"He...it would have been found out," Dr. Director informed him. "When we raided Bueno Nacho headquarters, we performed medical exams upon everyone captured. Eric isn't so sophisticated that even a cursory medical exam wouldn't reveal its true nature."
"Did you perform these exams due to Eric admitting his origin?" Rabbi Katz asked her. "Or, if he hadn't made his admission, would you have only examined those who were wounded?"
"That's our policy," Dr. Director admitted.
"So, had he kept his mouth shut, he would most likely have been able to pass himself off as a human who had been captured by Drakken," Rabbi Katz stated.
"Not exactly," Ron interrupted. "We saw him change appearance...or his clothes changed, when he showed up after Kim beat Shego. We would have wondered what was up."
Ron was insulted when Kim gave him an angry glare for telling the truth.
"Okay, he would have been investigated once he exposed himself," Katz admitted. "Let me play devil's advocate here. I want to find out how he could possibly be serving Drakken by doing what he did. First," one finger went into the air. "He could have simply shocked Kimberly out, rather than betraying Drakken's plan. How does this benefit Drakken?"
Neither Dr. Director nor Ron could come up with an explanation.
"Okay, second," another of the Rabbi's fingers extended into the air. "Upon refusing to incapacitate Kimberly, he directed Kim and Ron to Drakken's control room. This saved the teens valuable time that they may have wasted searching, or scouting for defenses. These few minutes saved numerous lives and considerable property damage. How did that benefit Drakken?"
Again, neither Dr. Director or Ron could come up with an answer.
"Third," another finger pointed toward the ceiling. "He waited for law enforcement to arrive." Katz shrugged his shoulders. "Actually, admitting to being a synthodrone to Kimberly was going to be number this one, but Ronald pointed out that he had already exposed himself as something other than human, so I'm skipping it. Be that as it may, instead taking advantage of the confusion to sneak off, he stayed and turned himself over to law enforcement, without resistance, as I understand it."
Dr. Director nodded.
"Okay, how is his being in custody of more benefit to Drakken than him wandering free?" Katz asked.
Yet again, Dr. Director and Ron were at a loss to explain.
"Finally, he insisted on being incarcerated, and remaining incarcerated," Katz held up a fourth finger. "He has made no effort to determine where he is being held, nor the status of Drakken or any of his crew. How has his continued incarceration benefiting Drakken?"
Nobody could provide a reason.
"So, we can reasonably say that Eric is not acting in his own self-interest, nor is he acting to help Drakken." The Rabbi concluded. "On the contrary, he acted in the interest of public safety and for the greater good, even though it put himself in danger, caused Drakken's plan to fail, and caused Drakken himself to be incarcerated. Is this accurate?"
Nods from everyone answered him, even though Ron noticed that Dr. Director seemed as reluctant has he did to agree.
"I can only conclude that Eric's actions come from a sense of morality," Rabbit Katz told them. "And where does morality come from? It comes from empathy; the ability to mentally place yourself in another's situation and consider how you would want to be treated. Do unto others as you would have others do unto you."
"Rabbi, are you suggesting what it sounds like you're suggesting?" Ron asked the clergyman. "Because if you are, I don't think I like the suggestion."
"I have to state what I believe," Katz told him. "A toaster makes toast; it doesn't consider the morality of making toast. Didn't you once tell me that Dr. Freeman's toaster was so focused on toast that it couldn't tell you who kidnapped him?" Katz paused a moment. "I can't believe that I actually said that, but it's valid. For all his genius, the AI that Dr. Freeman programmed into his toaster didn't evolve to the point where it would consider doing anything other than make toast. Eric was able to go beyond that; that's something that a machine simply can't do."
"Rabbi Katz, are you suggesting that Eric is human?" Dr. Director looked as shocked as Ron felt. The teenager noted that Freeman and Porter seemed agreeable with the Rabbi, while the lawyer had a calculating look on her face.
"I honestly don't know," Katz admitted. "But I can say this; whatever the motivations that Drakken had when he created Eric, whatever the acts that he performed to create Eric, it's now up to us to decide how to treat Eric. I don't condone playing God, but I cannot blame the product of Drakken's hubris for what Drakken did." He looked at Ron. "If a man and woman were to have a child out of wedlock, it's a sin, but the child cannot be held guilty of the sin. It's the same with what Drakken did; he sinned by creating a person, but I cannot condone punishing Eric for what his creator did."
"So you're saying that we should treat Eric as a person?" Dr. Director asked.
"If he isn't a person, what is he?" Rabbi Katz asked her. "He isn't a machine, because a machine would have done what it was built and programmed to do. In fact, if a child were to be raised by a madman, only to realize that what he was doing was wrong and turned on his father, we'd be complimenting him and holding him up as an example to be followed. How can we punish Eric for doing the same?"
"Rabbi Katz?" Ron asked. "How can we know that Eric is suffering by being incarcerated? I mean, it's not a person, so it might not have the need for exercise, fresh air, socializing...all that sort of thing."
"I don't, Ronald," Katz admitted. "But I know that Eric was designed to mimic human behavior and he's gone beyond his programming. It was interactions with others that allowed him to determine that his reason for existence was wrong, so I know that interactions are vital to his growth as a person. Because of this, I must insist that he be treated as a sentient being."
"How about the legal side of this?" Kim looked to the lawyer.
"It's an interesting situation," the woman informed them. "And my firm is taking this on, at no fee. The legal precedent could be argued for years. Obviously, the courts will have to rule on this, but we intend to file suit in order to secure Eric's release."
"Why is it so important to release him?" Dr. Director demanded.
"First, Miss Possible requested this of my firm," the lawyer answered. This prompted all faces to turn Kim's way, but the lawyer continued. "Secondly, we have an interest in this. Clearly, artificial intelligence is becoming more common and there has been no legal definition established to determine when a machine becomes a thinking, rational being with rights, privileges and responsibilities. If my firm is on the forefront of this effort, a great deal of prestige, and money, can be made."
"So it's the profit motivation?" Now, Dr. Director sounded equal parts disgusted and amused.
"Not entirely," the lawyer told her. "This is a real issue with multiple details to be worked out. For example, should Eric be allowed to vote? He appears to be a boy in his late teens, but in reality he's less than six months old. He drives a motorcycle...is that legal? Will he need to register for Selective Service? Can he legally hold a job, pay taxes? Doctor Freeman has several appliances; and a car, equipped with comparable artificial complexity. Doctor Porter has a robot, as well. Does this make them slave owners? Does Doctor Porter's robot deserve rights and privileges, while Doctor Freeman's appliances don't, because the robot has a human form? Technology has outrun the law, and the law has to catch up. I want my firm to be at the front of the charge to do so."
"But there's still a great deal of money to be made," Dr. Director added.
"Undoubtedly," the lawyer made no effort to hide the fact. "However, let me say this; we are going to file suit, on Eric's behalf, to get him released. You can stand against us or you can face the media firestorm that will erupt when it comes clear that this artificial person, who assisted Kim Possible in defeating Dr. Drakken's attack, is being held without any charges being filed."
"And where will Eric go if, and when, he's released?" Dr. Director asked.
"As of now, my parents have offered to keep him at our house," Kim announced.
Ron could only feel his heart plunge even further down into his belly.
Answers were needed, even though she knew she wouldn't like them. It was ironic that Yamanouchi had taught her to endure the unpleasant, and now that endurance would be used to pry secrets that it wanted to keep. When Junso had told her about Master Sensei's way of handling both triumph and tragedy, she had been disillusioned. When she learned that the masters only indulged in such behavior after such missions were complete and the aftermath dealt with, she had been slightly mollified. Now that she wanted information, she was grateful for this habit.
Drakken's attack was over a week in the past. The combined efforts of Yamanouchi and the Yakuza Clans had tended to the injured, rescued the trapped and fed the survivors. Now, the proper authorities were at work to get Japan back on its feet. However, the truce still held for a few more days. Those students that Junso had told her would tend to Master Sensei and his selected guests during indulgence had told her that they had been summoned to serve him this night. Yori idly wondered how many Yakuza heads were also taking advantage of the relative peace to drink themselves into oblivion.
The night dragged on. On occasion, one of those students tending to the masters would slip out to tell her that the Headmaster was still in command of his wits. Yori had very little experience with alcohol, so she didn't know if this was impressive or normal. She could only go over what she would do when the time was right. Finally, with her nerves fraying, her fellow student emerged from Master Sensei's quarters to tell her that the master had firmly hoisted his third sheet to the wind. He was now quite talkative but had a very tenuous hold on situational awareness. Taking a deep breath, she went into her target's own home.
Master Sensei was sprawled on a mat, leaned against a wall. He was not very sturdy but was in a better state than the three lower masters he was entertaining, all of whom had already passed out.
"A dark day," the old master announced. "But we've been through darker. Japan will rebuild and this truce will come to an end. We'll again limit the influence the Yakuza pigs have on our fair land and tend to our never-ending tasks."
"But now we have the Han," Yori said, standing behind one of the comatose masters, seeing her chance to steer the old man's rhetoric.
"Yes!" He punched a fist into the air, and act that nearly knocked him over. "The price was great and we also mourn the passing of the last of Toshimiru's direct line...other than the Han herself."
"But Junso-san has not passed away yet," Yori pointed out.
"We've discussed this," Sensei waved away the statement with an unsteady flop of his arm. "The Han drew too much of her Ki. She will never recover, as well we knew. A great price to pay."
"So what is to become of her?" Yori did her best to lower her voice to approximate an elderly man.
"We'll run the machines to keep her body alive," Sensei slurred. "We've already discussed this. We will hope for a miracle that will never happen, while utilizing her as a source of nourishment for the Han. A sad state, but we must make the motions of trying to save her. No, her spirit has already fled its vessel, may it find harmony in the next life. Another round!"
Yori mixed some American Bourbon and a soft drink, then served it to the old man. She had already learned what she needed to, so she had become emboldened to learn yet more. Judging by Master Sensei's slurred speech and that he clearly didn't recognize her, she was certain that he would not remember anything of her interrogation. It was time to learn still more.
"What is to become of the Chosen One, now that he has given us the Han?" Yori asked. "Will we keep monitoring him?"
"Of course, you fool!" The old man was too drunk to be actually offended and as Yori had hoped, the alcohol had loosened his tongue. "He still has tasks to perform; preparing the Han for her great confrontation, challenging the great evil's minion, even more. He will need our direction and influence but we gain from this as well. He is a powerful tool for use to wield, as long as he doesn't realize he's being used."
"Will he live a normal life?"
"Absolutely not!" The old man broke into giggles. "His life has not been normal at any point! If he had lived a normal life, he would not have become the Chosen One! Ours isn't the only trouble that will come his way, but the Mystical Monkey Power, and the modifications that Young Hirotaka managed to steal from Fiske, will leave him well equipped to handle such trouble." The old man snorted and took a deep draw from his drink. "The assistance he has provided Kim Possible has also prepared him. What's better, it would appear that the girl has no interest in him as a boy. That's to our advantage, it gives us another lever to use on him. He's young, he can be led around by his inkei."
"Is that why you had Yori-san attend to him during his stay here?" Yori asked, feeling slightly odd asking after herself.
"Oh, he was too out of sorts to make a move on her," Sensei offered another unsteady wave, like he was shoeing away such an idea. "And young Yori was not about to indulge in such things. Still, a young man will push himself harder on a pretty young woman's request than he may on a master's demand. So yes, I was utilizing Yori-san to get more out of him, just as I sent Hirotaka-san to meet with Possible, at Middleton. Young women are just as easily affected by a handsome, young man, and young Hirotaka knows how to make use of that."
"And now?" Yori pressed. "What if Yori-san should decide to indulge with him?"
"Then I hope they both enjoy themselves," Sensei attempted to salute with his glass, but wound up spilling most of his drink. Acting the proper servant, Yori took it from him.
"I would like Yori-san to be happy," the old man babbled on, while Yori refilled the glass. "She needs to unwind a bit, maybe indulge in such activity with someone she thinks she loves. She is responsible and takes her medicines, so there will be no complications. She will see him infrequently enough, so she won't develop an attachment so strong to compromise her loyalties. Best of all, it will bind him more strongly to Yamanouchi."
She didn't know if she should be grateful that Master Sensei wanted her to be happy, or insulted that the old man would seek to exploit her affections. She decided to accept that the old man simply sought to make use of any tool at his disposal. After all, he had never actually suggested that she seduce Stoppable-san. She handed her master the glass and stepped back as he took a deep draw.
"But what about the Chosen One," she asked. "What is to become of him? Will he be able to have girlfriends, lovers, a wife and children?"
"Now that he has fathered the Han, he will be free to do so," the old man's slur was becoming more pronounced. "The future is unclear; the Mystical Monkey Power may allow him to have additional children, or it may prevent such. The alterations done at Camp Gottagrin may affect any such children. None of this is our concern. Still, I wish him happiness. It would be churlish to wish him ill after he has served us, and will serve us again."
Yori's questions had been answered, so she asked no more. Without the distraction of talking, Sensei was free to drink more and was soon as comatose as the other masters. Yori slipped out of his quarters and nodded to the students who had been assigned to serve. They studiously avoided asking what information she had gleaned, instead, they would see the masters to their beds, so there would be a minimum of embarrassment in the morning. As for Yori, she had another task to perform.
The infirmary was almost abandoned at this late, or to be more precise, early hour. Only the two medics on duty with the Han, who waved her through the nursery. Yori paused and looked at the peacefully sleeping child, amazed that such a tiny, cute thing could be the center of such sacrifice and carnage. This was all that remained of her friend and despite herself, Yori found herself very fond of the little girl. However, watching her wasn't getting her last chore finished.
She left the nursery and entered Junso's chamber. Before looking at her friend, she passed through the room to a storage room, where she knew a backup life support unit was kept. Being quiet, so that she wouldn't awaken the child or alert the girl's attendants, she drove a shiv into the life-support unit's CPU. After pausing to make sure that nobody was coming to investigate the very slight noise, she nodded to herself and returned to Junso's bedside.
"I do not know if you can hear me," she spoke to the pale, unmoving form on the bed. "Perhaps you are still in there, perhaps your spirit remains here, anchored by your living flesh. I do not claim to know what happens to us when we pass on, but it is beyond time that you do so."
"I got some answers from Master Sensei," she continued. "There is no hope for you. You are only kept in this state out of empty hope and to utilize you to provide milk to the Han. This wasn't the fate you would have chosen for yourself. Before I do what I must, I will tell you two things. First, I shall look after the Han as best I can. Secondly, I shall fulfill my promise to you. I will seek to live and enjoy myself, pleasures that were denied you. Now, I say farewell, my friend. I set you free."
With a quick, practices motion she pulled out one of her fans and sliced this support unit's CPU clean in half. She made no move to catch the pieces that clattered to the floor, nor did she make any effort to conceal the fan she had used to destroy it. Even ninja can be noisy when they are more intent on speed than stealth. The Han's two attendants made a great deal of noise...for ninja...running into Junso's room.
Yori made no effort to escape or hide. She would face whatever consequences were to come from this act. The important thing was that Junso was finally free of her obligations.
A/N: As always, my thanks to Joe Stoppinghem for beta reading.