Of Gods and Robots (Alice)

[Xain]

The shrine, a place to pray to and make donations to a god of your choice. Xain had not been there since the first encounter with demons. He had also found out that his first friend in the city, Vice, had become a shadow. Xain had also spoke for the first time in front of a group there. Now the android found himself there again.

The robot took measure of the area before having a seat on one of the benches. With the sun high in the sky, the shrine looked much different than from when it was under the effects of the Dark Hour. Xain took a deep breath and soaked in the scenery.

Hopefully, this trip to the shrine won't cause so much turmoil.

[Xain]

Xain glanced over at the approaching person. She was talking about how he may be in need of a friend. The android thought it over and thought that the girl might be right. The only two people he had really had any real encounters with he barely knew. One had even turned into a shadow shortly after meeting Xain.

With a rueful smile, he moved over on the bench so that the girl could have some room to sit. He then pulled out his pen and pad before writing. He paused for a moment to look at the girl, but he then continued with his pen.

[Xain]

Xain looked over at the girl again. He smiled, then finished his writing. When done, he showed his work to the girl. My name is Xain, it read. It's nice to meet you. I'm sorry for not speaking this aloud, but I've got an issue. I can't talk in front of people I don't know. As such, I use this as a form of communication. I must have some bad wiring, huh? Anyway, what's your name?

Even with the bad wiring pun aside, Xain knew that wasn't the issue. Still, he was curious how the girl would react to his writing. Surprise, maybe. Some people have tried mocking him, although that doesn't last long. There are plenty of other reactions he's experienced, which makes trying to predict one fun.

Still, this girl was a challenge...

[Xain]

Xain looked at her with a smile. She wouldn't have got the joke unless she knew what he was, and odds of that were rather slim. Still, she was nice enough to disagree with him. He started writing again. He kept looking at Alice through the corner of his eye and smirking slightly, but she may not have noticed that. He hoped not, at least.

When he revealed the writing again, it read Trust me, Alice, you have no idea. Although it is a pleasure to meet you as well. Do you mind terribly if I ask what has brought you here? The android was truly curious. Few people came to the shrine except to donate. That was the reason why he had come up here to begin with.

[Xain]

"A large battle took place here," she said. She knows something. But what? Xain asked himself. What could the girl know? Was she a User, like him, or one of the shadows that talk and think and such? There was no real way to tell, he realized, but he could be sure that she had information that a normal person didn't have.

Xain frantically wrote in his pad as quickly yet eligibly as possible. He showed it to Alice, and it read Alice, what do you know of the battles? That's not common knowledge, as you may well know.

He looked around. Evidence of the fight was there, but it wasn't the first thing that a person would think of.

[Xain]

Xain looked at Alice with a look of disbelief. He started writing frantically. He knew she must know about shadows. That much was as obvious as if it had run him down with a big-rig. What that meant, though, was up in the air. Alice could be anything, he realized. She could be a normal civilian, or she could be a typical User. There was the chance of her being a shadow. Then there was the possibility of her being an Anti-Shadow Weapon like him.

He stopped writing and showed his frantic work to Alice. If you know, the writing said, then what are you? Are you a Shadow? A User?

[Xain]

Xain looked at Alice with startled eyes. He didn't believe it. He had finally found another ASW in the city. His relief and shock were plainly etched on his face, but he didn't realize it. He simply looked at Alice, unsure of what to do. He hadn't been expecting to come across another ASW at the shrine, of all places.

"You..." he said without thinking. "You are an ASW as well? I... Xain pulled up his jacket sleeve, revealing a robotic arm. "I have yet to meet any others..." he looked at Alice. "You re the first other ASW I have encountered."

[Deleted]

"Yep. I haven't met any of my brethren yet, but I know for sure that you're the first one I met too. It's nice to meet someone who's an ASW like me and hopefully, I get to meet another ASW sometime as well." With that being said, she smiled at the young man. Well, that was the first time that he spoke, really. Up until now he was just quiet and didn't say much. Maybe he just opened up after hearing that she was a robot herself. But, there was still the recurring Shadow threat or at least some threatening presence that tried to destroy the city. Speaking of which, the city had felt almost empty as if no one had ever had the energy to do anything anymore. It was almost like if...the city had died and all of its residents were like zombies. That was what happened when nothing new had happened or so the other Persona Users thought.