Shouyou James' Office.
11:23 a.m. 24th June, 1092.
Suzuki walked through the office hallway, brows drawn in a tight frown. Despite his protest, Kashi insisted on forcing him to come out after every five in-game days, even if only for an hour or two.
Originally, he intended on hitting the gym, but then changed his mind when he saw the sun. He rarely woke up during the day. This was a good opportunity to do something he had been putting off for too long. The young man stopped in front of a door and gently knocked.
Ku. Ku.
"Come in!"
Suzuki tucked his hands into his hoody's pocket and then made his way into the room. 'As expected.' The young man looked at the games sitting around the office. It would not be a Shouyou office without random arcade games littered haphazardly around.
"So, you're finally here, Su-kun."
Suzuki looked across the room to the smugly smirking blonde man seated behind a desk. James Shouyou. Now that Suzuki thought about it, his life went out of whack from the moment he met this man. The young man's eyes narrowed.
"You look pissed." James' smile widened to a full grin. "Well, to be fair, you always look pissed. You should smile more." When Suzuki did not respond, he shrugged and then pointed at the chair. "Take a seat. Bet you've got tons of questions to ask."
"I'm good." Suzuki silently searched James' eyes. In this world, Suzuki had never met a soul he could not read. No one, that is, except this man. "I remembered, James." Suzuki frowned. Kashi's little episode forced him to relive the buried memories. That was why he remembered something he'd forgotten. Something he initially thought irrelevant. "How long?"
James' brow rose. "How long?"
"Since when have you been watching me?" Suzuki's gaze grew cold. "Back then, at the hospital. You were there when I woke up the first time." Suzuki remembered it. The first time he awoke after the accident. The nurse by his bedside ran away, screaming for the doctor. The door she yanked open in her haste. The blonde man barely visible through the door crack. "That was you, wasn't it?" His memory was hazy, but that was to be expected. It was his first memory after a massive accident. Furthermore, his vision was blurry, and he passed out soon after.
Suzuki glared at James. Was this the reason he always held on to that room? During Razznik, and now Kashi's dives, his 'waiting room' always was that white hospital room. Was this a subconscious way of warning himself that there was something he missed?
"Oh? You remembered?" James leaned back in his chair. His smile relaxed, and he looked at Kashi. "Yes. That was me. You had several third-degree burns. Fixing your skin without leaving any blemishes was expensive, you know?"
Suzuki's frown deepened. This was what he hated the most about this man. James always seemed to be in control. It sometimes felt like everyone else was dancing around in his palms. "Why?"
"Why?"
"Stop playing dumb. Why did you help me? Why did you only show up years later?" Suzuki clenched his fists. "I have a shit ton of questions. So, let's make this quick. I'm not letting Kashi walk into that battle blind." He jabbed his index finger at the smug man. "He needs to know what the hell you're planning. No. What you've been planning for years now."
"Haha!" James burst out laughing. He gave the young man a look of ridicule. "Do you think this is some anime? That you're some chosen one I personally groomed all these years for a nefarious plot?" James shook his head and waved his hands. "You've got it all wrong, Su-kun." He shrugged when he noticed the doubt in Suzuki's eyes. "Alright. I've never kept any secrets. You just never asked the right questions. Why did I help you?" James chuckled and reached into his desk cabinet. He pulled out a picture frame and passed it to the youth.
"This is—" Suzuki froze, eyes wide in shock. The picture depicted Mato Ryumaki, his father, and Shouyou James standing in front of an upright blue, transparent pod filled with a strange liquid. Something obscured from view by their hands floated within the pod.
"Your father was the most brilliant man I've had the pleasure of meeting on this planet." James pulled Suzuki's attention to him. "He and Akira are the closest things I have ever had to friends." He revealed a bitter smile as he pointed at the frame. "You—or rather, Razznik already met Light in King's Journey. It's quite honestly the greatest invention in the history of mankind. A fully sentient artificial intelligence capable of building worlds, other A.Is, and performing more calculations per second than all computers in the world combined." James looked into Suzuki's eyes. "Your father designed that. That was why he couldn't be with you all those years. He bet everything on this one invention."
Suzuki frowned. "What about Lunette and Shadow?"
"Those two?" James wore a wistful smile. "They're the first sentient A.Is Ryu developed. The building blocks for Light, you might say." He scratched his chin. "Back then, he was always so mopey and alone. I light-heartedly advised him to design them after something he loves to keep him company. I didn't think he would base the design on his own family."
Suzuki clenched his fists and tightly shut his eyes. He took a minute to calm down the rage that rushed up to his chest. He could not afford to lose his temper here. Not now. He was eating up enough of Kashi's prep time as it was.
"Oh? You've really learned to control your anger well." James chuckled. The veins bulging on Suzuki's head and neck were hilarious to him. "Time was, you'd have jumped over the table and begun strangling me to death."
"It's not too late." Suzuki opened his eyes as his breath evened out. Despite his words, he shook his head and said, "So, this is the reason you helped me? You were my father's friend?"
"More or less."
"So, you watched me while I was in foster care?" Suzuki's brows furrowed. "Then, the contract Razznik supposedly earned. That was all you?" For some reason, that left a nasty taste in his mouth. That contract was one of the few things Razznik was satisfied with before he died.
Mr. and Mrs. Akio might have gotten a large share of the money, but there was more than enough for Suzuki to live off of when he turned 18 and cut them off as planned. The warrior was glad that, somehow, with his own hands, he forged a brighter future for Suzuki.
The thought that that achievement was all James was, quite frankly, downright disgusting.
"Yeah, it was all me... is what I'd like to say." James snorted as he watched Suzuki's rapidly changing emotions. To most people, Suzuki's face was forever neutral, but James had learned to read the young man's real feelings from his eyes' minute fluctuations. "But, Razznik earned that deal all on his own. To be honest, I was not planning on interfering in your life until you turned 18." He patted his chest with a mournful, wronged expression. "Razznik catching the eyes of our talent scouts was shocking for me too, you know? Nearly had a heart attack when I saw your profile."
"Why?" Suzuki gritted his teeth as he recalled Mr. Akio's favorite belt. "Why did you decide to wait?"
James' smile disappeared when he saw the pain in the young man's eyes. Suzuki was the toughest person James knew. But being tough did not negate the pain. It only meant one was able to bear the pain. Written another way, toughness meant someone had become so accustomed to the pain that they could deal with it better than others. "I had to wait. I made a promise to your father."
"What?"
James sighed as he raised his head to look at the ceiling. "Your father loved you, Suzuki. More than you will ever realize. He took so many measures to ensure that should anything ever happen to him, both you and your mother would be okay for the rest of your lives." He revealed a bitter smile and then looked at Suzuki. "You could say he learned from what he once considered his biggest mistake and made sure to account for every possible scenario."
Suzuki laughed. "So, he did see me as a mistake."
"Right up until your birth, yes." James honestly revealed the truth. "He often talked about how scared he was. But that only lasted until you were born. He always said he knew from the moment he first laid eyes on you. "My mission is to make sure Suzu gets everything he wants in this world." He would repeat that phrase to death. Made me sick, to be honest." James shrugged, and then continued, "But that's precisely why he made me swear not to bring you in until you were 18."
"What the hell are you talking about? What changes at 18?"
James shrugged. "You become a billionaire."
"...I'm sorry?"
"Well, a yen billionaire. You'd only be a dollar millionaire." James chuckled and then pointed at the picture. "Aside from a few research grants, Ryu never accepted payment from the company. He, instead, demanded a percentage share of all profits from Light, if and when he completed it." He then looked at Suzuki. "Your house was a research benefit. To be honest, your parents were dirt poor. That is why your father spent all that time in the office. The sooner he finished, the faster your lives could really start."
James shook his head. Reality was often cruel. A man sacrificed his family's present happiness in the hopes of a blissful future. Unfortunately, he lost his life right after accomplishing that dream. James rubbed his face and then looked at Suzuki. "Aside from your school fees and upkeep, Ryu kept separate accounts for both you and your mother in the event of his death. That is what the Akio's were leeching off of. But, even larger than that, he put you down to inherit his shares in Light, but only when you turned 18. He feared someone might manipulate you to steal your shares if you got it earlier."
James brushed back his hair and then revealed a bitter smile. "As I said, he became paranoidly cautious after you." He sighed and said with a shrug. "That's why I waited so long. You were only supposed to inherit the shares when you turned 18. I didn't think you would suffer that much in the foster care system." He pointed at himself. "I'm a foster care kid too, you know? My first folks weren't the royal-stamp grade, but they at least tried their best. Of course, they don't compare to the old Jedi."
Suzuki frowned. "Who?"
"Never mind." James waved off Suzuki's question and then linked his fingers. "I believe I've answered your questions, right? Do you have any more?"
"Tons, actually." Suzuki did not care about this billionaire nonsense. Being alive was already a blessing he did not deserve... "But I'll ask the one that's been weighing on my mind the longest first." His gaze turned frosty cold. "Taki. Usman Taki. He's one of yours, isn't he?"
James' smile once again blossomed. "Ho? You figured it out? When?"
"The first day I met him." Suzuki snorted. "The others didn't personally care about me, but Taki. He was watching me too closely." Suzuki shrugged and then said, "Same with Kashi. Whenever they are together, Miote doesn't stop looking at Kashi. It's obvious someone got him to watch us. The only person who would give a damn about me in this place and has the power to pull off such a thing." Suzuki pointed at James. "You. You're the only one."
James chuckled. "Look who's been watching Detective Conan. Well, you're not wrong, though he's far from the only one keeping an eye on you two. He's inexperienced, so cut him some slack. Besides, he hasn't reported in a long time." His eyes lit up as he said in jest, "I think he's taken a liking to you two."
"I don't care." Suzuki shrugged. "He can do what he likes. Just needed to confirm that." The youth then held up two fingers. "Question number two. This one's for Kashi. What the hell's up with Zuri? Is she like Lunette and Shadow? Don't even pretend not to know who Zuri is. I know you keep track of everything Kashi does. I won't be surprised if you watch him like a pervert."
"You wound me." James placed his hands over his chest and then scrunched his face in mock-hurt. He then laughed as he remarked, "I only follow Kashi because of you." Ignoring the scorn on the young man's face, he chuckled and then tapped on his desk.
A holographic screen appeared, hovering over the table. "Zuri's a special case." The image switched to reveal a hospital room. Several machines, monitors, and pipes were hooked up to a tiny, skinny child lying on the bed. "Zuri is the first coma patient to be successfully injected into the gaming world. Hospital researchers are trying to see if Virtual Reality can stimulate coma patients into waking up."
"...And?"
James shook his head. "It's tough to know whether it's a success or not. She is the first and only candidate so far to enter the program successfully. Furthermore, it seemed to do a number on her mental faculties. Her memories were erased, and she mentally regressed to about an 8-9-year-old." James pointed at the screen. "She's 14, by the way." He released a defeated sigh as he lamented, "There's a system monitoring her progress. It will only give her the option to logout when it deems the situation safe enough. Or else, there's a high chance of regression." James looked at the silent Suzuki. "Don't worry. There's no danger to her life. She can live there till she's grey and old. We're prepared to pay the full price."
Suzuki nodded. That ought to satisfy Kashi's unease. Frankly, he should have asked much sooner, but Kashi was either too busy, or Suzuki woke up at the dead of night.
"Hmm..." James looked at Suzuki. Something was off. All these questions. Sure, they were things Suzuki would have been curious about. But they were not the type of thing that would make this stubborn kid come all the way to his office. Besides, what was it that Suzuki said at the start? "I thought you did not want Kashi to walk into that battle blind?" James grinned. "Why don't you stop beating around the bush and ask what you really want to know."
"Razznik." Suzuki's gaze turned sinister. "That thing in the game." The young man would never forget the eyes he saw through Kashi's. The arrogance. The way he looked Kashi in the eyes. The way he carried a sword. It was the same. It was exactly the same! "How the hell is Razznik in that world!?"
James' grin grew even wider till they were almost the size of a Cheshire cat's. "Now, that is the real question."
James stood up. He glanced at Suzuki, off-handedly saying as he walked toward a Street Fighters Arcade machine. "Say, how do you think the A.Is were created?"
"How?" Suzuki frowned. Why was he asking such an inane question? "You already said it. Light. It produces new A.Is, doesn't it?"
"Oh. You were paying attention. Nice!" remarked James as he flipped on the machine. Nwuom! The logo flashed on the screen. James emerged from the back of the machine. He cast a mischievous smile at Suzuki and then challenged, "But, then. How was Light itself created?"
Suzuki frowned. "How the hell am I supposed to know that? I didn't study artificial intelligence!"
"Fair point." James chuckled. He tapped on his head as he selected a character. "It's the brain, Suzu-chi. Previously, no matter how advanced our A.I technologies was, they always lacked a little something extra. Something that would elevate them beyond intelligent lines of code." James' eyes shone as he turned to look at Suzuki. "That's where your father, Ryumaki, comes in. He designed a machine that could accurately map out and interpret the neurons firing in our brains while we think."
"Huh?"
James sighed. "How did a blockhead like you come from Ryu?" He gave Suzuki a look of disdain. "Listen, Ryu's machine could listen and store your thoughts for further processing. We used several volunteers, from babies to old men, on the cusp of death. Through mapping out the neurological activities in these individuals, Light became the first A.I to truly understand the meaning of life. Also, the only one of its kind to be able to create more A.I that can learn from any stimuli regardless of the field of expertise."
"Just like humans?"
James snapped his fingers. "Exactly!" Unfortunately, that resulted in his fighter getting smashed. "Damn it!" He quickly restarted the fight and then said, "The A.Is produced by Light are capable of rapid-learning from exposure to any random stimuli. They are also capable of determining quick judgments over various kinds of situations." James knocked back his opponent, then quickly pointed at Suzuki's chest. "The heart. It wasn't enough to have Intelligence. The A.Is needed to understand empathy so they could reach much more humane decisions, even if they went against hard logic." James grinned as he rapidly rushed the enemy character. He then declared as he launched a 17-hit combo that wiped the rest of its health bar.
"That's the Spirit of Humanity after all!"
Suzuki snorted. "I don't know what cherry-picked side of humanity you're talking about." He walked over to the machine and seized control of the second player controls. Quickly selecting Hwaorang, he derided, "The humans I know are selfish, lying vicious assholes. They betray and lie to each other at the drop of a hat, and..." Suzuki frowned. "...they murder those they swore to protect, and find funny ways to justify escaping the punishment they deserve."
"Dark as always." James looked at the stone-faced Suzuki. As expected, the kid was still blaming himself for the accident. James recalled when Razznik first told his in-game avatar about the difference between Suzuki and himself. Suzuki later confirmed this to be accurate but blamed himself for what was really a series of unfortunate accidents.
James, however, knew that Suzuki was not the type to be comforted by soft words. If anything, they would most likely piss him off more. He selected Jin, and then said as the stage booted, "I prefer to see the good side in humanity." His gaze momentarily darkened. "Well, I'm banking on it, or we're all fucked."
"Huh?"
"Never mind." James' smile returned before Suzuki noticed the oddity. "Anyway, like I was saying, Light learned to read people's thoughts, and that's how it was able to create new, intelligent A.I life with differing personalities. They are permutational combinations of those first set of volunteers." James grinned and then winked at Suzuki. "Of course, that skill only got better when Light got millions of willing volunteers."
Suzuki swiftly sidestepped James' beam cannon. He then charged in to deliver a set of punishing kicks while James was still locked in his animation. "So, that's what King's Journey was? A way to increase Light's skill? Then, Razznik. You got him through scanning my thoughts?"
"Bingo." James sacrificed a power bar to break out of the stun. "Our Razznik was created by copying your neurons while you were logged in." He then launched a roundhouse kick at Suzuki's head. "But, you're wrong about the purpose of King's Journey. We made that game to find the Ultimate Guardian."
"Ultimate Guardian?" Suzuki ducked under the kick and then delivered a sweeping kick, launching James off the ground. He then followed up with five increasingly rising kicks. "What kind of chunnyibou shit is that?" Once at the maximum height, he spun around and stomped James to the ground with a dragon kick.
"Well, that's above your clearance level." James chuckled as he quickly disengaged, barely dodging Suzuki's follow-up kick. "But the Ultimate Guardian's supposed to be a program with a strong conviction to protect. However, we needed more than conviction. It needed the required strength too."
"Huh?" Suzuki chased the retreating James. "That doesn't make any sense. It's a program. Can't you just increase the numbers yourselves?"
"No." James sweated as he rapidly blocked Suzuki's relentless assault. "That would break the rules. Then we'd really be fucked."
Suzuki's frown deepened. He could tell there was something more; something James did not want to tell him. It was like a single thread holding this convoluted plot together. Once he pulled, everything would be unraveled. Unfortunately, James had put up a strong shield. The man would not spill.
Suzuki switched tactics. He used a power bar to cancel a kick. James, who had already raised his guard in anticipation, was rendered incapable of dodging Suzuki's grab. "Then, Razznik," questioned Suzuki as he delivered two kicks to James' head. "Does he know he's an A.I? Does he know about this Ultimate Guardian nonsense?" He then twisted, delivering four more kicks with the back of his heel, the last of which sent James flying.
"Yes, he's aware." James groaned as a golden perfect appeared on the screen. He swiftly picked replay and then continued, "He has been aware from the moment he gained sentience."
"Then, if Razznik is your Ultimate Guardian. What is he supposed to protect?"
"The earth." James smiled but then corrected himself, "Ah, no. I suppose Novura would be the more appropriate term."
Suzuki's brow rose in confusion. "Novura?"
"It's the name of Destia's planet. Really shouldn't be telling you this since the information isn't public yet." James paused. He then shook his head and lazily remarked, "Well, it's just a name, so I guess it doesn't count as a spoiler."
"Okay. So, Razznik's supposed to protect Novura?" Suzuki looked at James with disdain in his eyes. "Do I look like an idiot? Have you seen what he did? What part of that is protecting Novura? More like he wants to destroy it."
James nervously laughed as he scratched the back of his head. "To be fair, this is the danger of working with sentient A.I. There is a chance they refuse to go along with the intended script." James' laugh relaxed into an easy smile. "However, I am sure he is still trying to protect Novura. Just in his own way."
"What makes you so sure?"
James' smile turned enigmatic. "Don't pretend like you don't know." He brushed his hair back and then fixed Suzuki with a provocative glare. "Because you're there."
"Don't talk nonsense." Suzuki snorted as he once again destroyed James' character. "Why would an A.I want to protect me? Besides, what if I quit? What then? Your Ultimate Guardian plan is flawed."
"You think so?" Contrary to Suzuki's expectations, James' smile only widened. "What if I told you that protecting Novura also protects you in the real world?"
Suzuki stared at James, eyes wide in shock. "The fuck are you talking about? Did you tell Razznik you'll kill me or something!?"
"Ouch!" James clutched his chest. "You wound me again, Sukki-kun—"
"Will you pick one and stick to it!?"
"Nope. You're so cute when you're pissed." James chuckled as he observed the young man's flaming eyes. "Much better than your resting bitch face."
"Ah, whatever!" Suzuki shook his head. Fighting James in a word battle was futile. The man had mastered the art of pissing people off. He instead returned to taking out his frustration on James' characters. "So? If you didn't threaten him, how could Novura possibly affect me in real life?"
James raised a finger to his lips and winked. "That too's a secret. You'll have to find out on your own. I can't break the rules anymore or—"
"Or we're fucked!" Suzuki let out an exasperated groan. "I get it!" He let out a long, frustrated breath. Talking to James was always like this. Every discussion ended up with even more questions. Suzuki took a breath and organized his thoughts. "So, Razznik is truly aware?"
James nodded. "Yes. He's fully aware."
"Fuck." Suzuki cursed, his brows tightly knit in a frown. "Then, he's just like Skyrm. Creating one was bad enough. You made another." Suzuki once again cursed. "If we add the siblings, that's four."
Suzuki scratched his head in frustration. "This changes things. If Razznik's sentient, then he's had 1000 years to carefully come up with his plan." Suzuki clenched his fists. "If he's anything like the Razznik I know, there'll be no reasoning with him. If Kashi doesn't meet his standards, Razznik'll slaughter him."
James' eyes widened. "Wow. What's this? Sounds like you actually care about Kashi?"
"Huh? Of course, I care." Suzuki cursed as he glared at the blonde man. "He's going to complete the job Razznik failed to complete."
James' brows furrowed. "You're still banging on about that? I've said it a thousand times, but Suzuki's death was not your fault." He paused and then added, "Besides, it's not that Razznik failed to complete it. He refused to. There's no way he would kill the person he was made to protect." James snorted. "I'm certain Kashi will be the same."
"You think so?" Suzuki suddenly let go of the controls. He glared at James with a pair of strangely determined eyes. "Do you think I didn't learn anything from Razznik?" Suzuki snorted as he pulled his hoody over his head and then slotted his hands into the pockets. "Razznik didn't have people he cared about. Not really. So, there was no reason for him to cling to life." A cold, sinister smile spread on Suzuki's lips. "Kashi has too many reasons to live. Too many people who care for him. Even if he wants to die, do you think they'll let him?"
James suddenly had a bad feeling. "You—"
"Later, James-san. Thanks for the talk. I know what I have to do." Suzuki walked out of the room before James could respond.
As the doors closed behind the youth, James caught sight of Suzuki's eyes. They were cold. So frighteningly cold. "...What are you planning?"