NOT just A ROBOT shipping meme

There's always a right tool for the job, be it as simple as a hammer for a nail or on up to the much, much more complex. In this, the near future, the new tool for the abstract, post-modern job is no longer from the humble tool box - it's robots. Robots have taken over most sectors, such as assembly, law enforcement, and even health care. Things run so much smoother when they're automated. Yet the most impressive factor is that robots have just recently begun to enter a sector previously believed to require human touch: the personal sector. From personal assistants to robo bodyguards to pleasurebots, most anyone who's anyone has a personal robot these days. Of course, humanity being the narcissistic charmers we are, all "companion" sector robots are made in our own beautiful image, or close to it.
But you know this. You have a personal robot, after all...or you are one.
Whether owner or robot, it's important to remember one key rule: robots, no matter how human they appear, cannot feel emotions. Any appearances thereof are programming in the AI.
Robots certainly, absolutely, cannot fall in love. Again, any appearances thereof are programming in the AI. If that's not the case, and "love" still seems present...
...well, a toll that no longer functions correctly may not be right for the job.
HOW TO PLAY β
- Comment with your character, preference, and whether you want to play a human or a robot.
- Reply to others.
- Use the RNG to choose a prompt or pick one yourself.
OWNER β
- Long Time Owner β You and your robot are a well-oiled machine, no pun intended.
- New Purchase β Congratulations, you have your brand new personal bot!
- Second Hand β Someone else owned this robot before you, but it can't be too damaged. There's no way you could afford a brand new one, anyway.
- For Science! β Your interests in robots are purely scientific. No matter how yours begins to act towards you, honest!
- Rescue β Whether you took them from the dump or from a bad owner, you brought this robot from the jaws of deletion.
- Reluctant β You never wanted a robot, but you've got one thrust on you anyway.
- Cruel β They're just a fancy computer, so you'll treat them however you like.
- See the Humanity β Even if you know it's all machinery and programming, you can't help but see the human side of your robot. They shouldn't have to be a servant.
- What's Real and What's Not β The lines are beginning to blur between real people and their emotions and your robot.
- Incompatible β You can't be with a machine, either romantically or sexually. You're simply not compatible.
- Too Engrossed β They say you've created a fantasy world. You're forgetting reality, or choosing to ignore it.
- Don't Care β You won't listen to what the others say; you know how you feel.
- Have to Pull Away β The close relationship you had with your robot has to be put aside for your own good.
- Live a Normal Life β As much as you can, you and your robot live like a normal couple.
- Bad End β Your robot is taken away, reprogrammed, or destroyed.
ROBOT β
- The Perfect Robot β You know what you and exactly what you were made to do. You will not stray.
- More Human than Human β Whoever programmed you made you to be just like a human.
- Conflicted β There is no way you could have what they call "feelings." But what is this stirring in your circuitry?
- Confused β Why do people treat you like a robot? You're a living thing, damn it!
- Damaged β Somehow, you've been corrupted. You're a blank slate and have to be cared for, though it should be the opposite. Or it could be that you're showing erratic behavior that no robot should...
- Shown Kindness β When you're treated kindly by a human, you are unsure how to process it. It makes you feel - content.
- No Longer Just a Program β Your "love" and "affection" may have been shades and imitations at first, but that's not the case any longer.
- Obsolete Model β You know you're old. Will you be forced to leave your master's side?
- Jealousy β A robot should not feel jealous. Still, you envy those close to your master.
- Job is Personal β You were programmed to protect or to serve, though you also do it because you...care
- Second Chance β Your old master tossed you aside and now you are wary. But you've been given another chance instead of being used for scrap.
- Rogue β There is no way you will be tied to the oppressive system. You refuse to serve the Living Things. Somehow, though, you've become aligned with one.
- One of a Kind β There are no other robots like you, and perhaps you are intended for a sinister fate. Rather than face your true duty, you have escaped to take refuge with a human.
- Specialty β You were created specifically for this one special person.
- Reprogrammed β Because of previous defects, you were taken back to factory settings before. However, that treacherous virus, "love," is bubbling back up.
- Android β You can't just forget the part of you that was - still is - organic.
- Learn to Be Human β Despite the odds and the prejudices you both will face, you have decided to live as a free, living person with the one you care for most.
- Bad End β You're to be junked, impacted, wiped clean, or taken away from your owner.
|
Chiaki Nanami | SDR2
Nanami as Robot, 6
On the inside, it serves quite a few more purposes than that, all of them being rather dubious... And one of these is to use the Reserve Course as a testing ground for personal robots.
Hinata Hajime is only aware of what's on the surface, however. As far as he knows, he's been allowed a robot companion since he's one of the top students in the Reserve Course.
...Even if it makes him feel guilty sometimes, with how much his own does for him. Hinata likes Nanami, cares for her more than he probably should. He knows she's only a robot, and yet... And yet...
He's only just gotten his shoes off at the genkan when Nanami is there, reaching to take his uniform jacket for him like she always does - and something is different today, something finally boils over, because Hinata stops her with a gentle hand and a tightness in his chest.]
Nanami. [He speaks her name softly, carefully watching for how she responds. Because he knows there will be something there, something human, just like the softness of her small hand in his own.] I know it's your programming, but... What if I help you today? Maybe with the cooking, or washing the dishes or laundry? I- [He swallows hard. He's probably being really stupid right now, can just imagine his mother clicking her tongue at him, but... Maybe it's just a flaw of his, but even if it's only her AI giving her human reactions like everyone always says, but he cares too much.] I just... really want to do something for you. Is that okay?