The Maestro's Children

Campaign: Android Anguish

Chapter 11 / 6-1

The Maestro's Children

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Summary

As the group pursues Laxi, Mascula informs them of his history. While the androids' creator, Maestro, gave Laxi absolute command over the other units, he granted Mascula the power to destroy Laxi utterly. And as a final gesture, he gave both of them a heart.

Dialogue

Laxi is 1,920 steps from this point. We must hurry! Are all androids so precise with their measurements? ...Laxi and I are special. We were unique designs. Unique, eh? Say, Mascula. You guys are all weapons made for fighting, yeah? Luca! What a rude question! I don't mind. It's the truth, after all. We are indeed weapons. But you only seem to want peace. Is that why you say you're unique? Might I take a moment to tell you of our past? We androids were created by the Dyrenell Empire 300 years ago. However, our creator, Maestro, did not actually wish to do so. He didn't want to create you? Right. Maestro was of Dyrenell, but he obeyed the Empire not out of choice. He often said that in truth, he had no desire to make weapons of war. So this Maestro guy is like your dad or something? Man, I can't even imagine knowing your own dad didn't want to make you. Talk about a total downer! Not at all. I was happy to have been made by Maestro. He never treated us as weapons. He hated sending us into battle, so much so that he defied the Empire's orders to do so time and again. That would explain why I almost never saw an android, despite hearing almost nonstop rumors about them. Some who fought the Empire back then even considered them a fiction dreamed up to instill fear in our hearts. That's all thanks to Maestro. But he was an organic being with a finite amount of time to live. He died, in other words. Yes. He was taken by illness before the conflict could end between the Dyrenell Empire and Alberius. However, he left behind fail-safes to ensure someone could not force us to fight after his death. What kind of fail-safes? First, he designed androids to prioritize Laxi's orders above all others—even the wielder of the control element. Secondly, he ensured that if Laxi were to ever cease functioning, all other androids would immediately do so as well. Finally, he created one final android with the power to annihilate Laxi. So this whole time there's been someone who can stop Laxi's mad rampage? Who is this magic android?! Me. YOU?! Yes. That is my purpose. Waaaait a second. Aren't you a big hippie who totally hates fighting? Yes, why would the power to stop Laxi be given to one who is clearly so loath to use it when necessary? I suspect that to be the exact reason. There was one final fail-safe that Maestro left in place: Unlike all other androids, Laxi and I have both been gifted with a heart. Do you mean that literally? As in a large muscle that pumps blood? No. Maestro gave us the capacity to judge right from wrong. This is what I call our "heart." And right now, Laxi's heart is damaged. That must be why she's attacking everyone indiscriminately. This functionality is also responsible for my disdain for fighting. If I destroy Laxi, all androids will cease to function. It is a decision with heavy consequences to say the least. I suspect Maestro gave me a heart so I would not wield this ability without giving it all due consideration. Hmm. I wonder. What is it? Your Maestro sounds like a kind man. Perhaps he gave you hearts not as a fail-safe, but just because he wanted his own children to have kind hearts themselves. You think he thought of us as his children? Of course you're his child! And that means he didn't give you a heart just to connect the dots in some kind of weird grand plan. He did it so you could become a kind person, just as he was. I had not considered that. Perhaps it occurred to you because you share the same kindness Maestro had. Thankfully, after his death, people managed to seal the Other away. We androids went to sleep, and Maestro's fail-safes were never needed. I expected we would remain dormant until the end of time. But 300 years later, I was awakened and met all of you. I cannot believe this to be coincidence. I fear the time to use the fail-safe implanted in me may finally be upon us.