Chapter 2 - Maestro Affairs
As they made their way out of the hotel, Taika’s mind was ablaze with curiosity. She had distinctly overheard Shouri’s mother ask why it seemed like her children took in strays. The Resonator posited that she was technically a stray, given she had no tuner or Maestro assigned to her. But what about this Damian character? He was a canine, but that lack of a tail…
Her eyes lowered to his backside, and that’s when she caught a glimpse of it--where a long, thin tail should have been poking out, there was only a little stub that could barely be called an appendage. Glancing up at his ears, they, too, were strange; it felt unnatural for them to be pointed up as they were.
The last thing of note was what she could feel with her sixth sense--her rhythm. He was a fire element, and there was a distinct feeling of heat that radiated from him. He took that fire element thing a bit too seriously, given how heavily he smelled of smoke.
“So, you picked a weird one, huh, Shouri?” asked Aura as the quartet made their way down the city streets.
“How so?” The brother glanced over at the elder sibling.
“Went with a lunar,” she stated.
Taika lowered her head in shame. Her element was something she was born with. It wasn't like she chose to be this way.
“That doesn’t matter to me,” Shouri spoke up, much to Taika’s surprise.
“I mean, I know that, but you know how people are gonna be,” Aura warned.
“Don’t remind me,” Shouri scoffed. “I’m not changing my mind. I’m going to be her Maestro,” he asserted.
The fox girl couldn’t help the big dumb grin she wore. Chasing after him was the best decision of her life, bar none. Aura didn’t seem too bad herself. Their parents, on the other hand, concerned the fox. Perhaps she could grow on them with time.
“Anyways, here we are!” Aura announced.
Where they had stopped wasn’t like anything Taika had ever seen before. The facility was a decently-sized one, with several large buildings on a sprawling campus. A stone sign stood just outside of the entrance to the property.
“East Nevepunto Maestro Affairs Office” was etched into the slab of rock.
Taika had never been to one of these before. In fact, before Shouri came into her life, she had seen very little of the world outside that dreadful manor. Books could never prepare her for how vast the real world was; it was so overwhelming--dizzying, even.
However…
Where things were different, an equal measure remained the same. Immediately upon stepping foot into the campus, people started staring--specifically at Taika. Naïve, yes. Oblivious, the fox was not. She knew what kind of stigma her element had. Her previous caretakers were meticulous--perhaps maliciously so--in educating her on her position in society.
The poor Resonator flattened her ears, tucking her tail between her legs as she tried to appear smaller than she was. Her lunar element wasn’t something she could just hide; rhythm, outside of being a source of power, was also a sense in its own right. Resonators exuded their element, which could be easily picked up by anyone with normal, functioning rhythm.
And these people at this MA Office? They certainly had sniffed out Taika’s element. The muttering, the pointing, the suspicious stares--all cast at her like stones. What was she even doing here? Who did she think she was? She wasn’t worthy of having a Maestro…
Aura looked to Damian, who was on alert and waiting for some brave fool to come try something. The brave fool who did do something was not who anyone expected, however.
“WHAT?”
All eyes were drawn to Shouri. “YOU GOT SOMETHING TO SAY?!” he boomed. The people staring averted their judgmental gazes and remained quiet. “ANY TAKERS?! COME ON! YOU ALL WERE RARING TO GO A MINUTE AGO!” he continued.
After another moment of silence, he nodded slowly to himself. “That’s what I thought.” he huffed, turning to his partner. Taika tried to make herself even smaller, but relaxed when she caught the smile meant only for her.
“Come on. Let’s go make this official.” His gentle tone made her swoon as she followed him closely. She wasn’t trying to immediately fall for her Maestro, but Shouri was making it so difficult by not being human garbage and actually standing up for her.
Damian and Aura, meanwhile, exchanged their confusion with a shared glance. That outburst was unlike anything that they had ever seen from Shouri before. They trailed behind the newer pair so they could speak in relative privacy.
“Is he already etuding with her?” Aura muttered.
“Probably,” Damian whispered back to his Maestro.
“Do you think they’re a duet?” she asked her Resonator.
“We’re gonna find out.”
Taika took in the interior of the Maestro Affairs Office with open awe. It was so clean and shiny. There was a main counter with two smiling attendants behind it--a Maestro and Resonator pair. Different screens provided a variety of information the little lunar element couldn’t hope to decipher. Many other Resonators and their Maestros loitered about the lobby, just relaxing away the afternoon in comfort.
Shouri was just as dumbstruck as his Resonator, having no idea where he was supposed to go. Fortunately, they were in the company of someone who did know what to do.
“This way.” Aura took the lead, guiding the lost souls to the front counter for processing.
“Good afternoon, and welcome to the East Nevepunto Maestro Affairs Office. How can I help you today?” the Maestro attendant asked with all the pep and cheer they could muster.
“My brother would like to register his new Resonator.” Aura stepped out of the way for Shouri.
“Certainly!” The attendant accepted a tablet from their Resonator counterpart and placed it on the counter for the new Maestro to take. “Just fill this out, and--”
Halfway through their spiel, the attendant caught sight of Taika. “--we’ll take you into the back,” they finished, the cheeriness in their voice noticeably falling off.
Shouri shot them a scowl and snatched up the tablet. “Sure.”
The four sat down in some chairs nearby. “I didn’t realize it was this bad,” Aura whispered to Damian.
“It’s not that bad on the streets. We take care of our kind. You get higher up on the food chain, they get picky,” the man mumbled quietly.
Aura rolled her eyes. She frowned at the attendant they'd just walked away from--who was trying their best not to stare.
The form Shouri had to fill out was relatively simple. Basic info about himself, and then some basic info about Taika. “What’s your birthday?” he asked her.
“July 16th, 2000.”
“Hey, I’m only a couple of months older than you.”
Aura watched her brother and his new partner talk warmly. There wasn’t anything wrong or weird about Taika. She was just another normal Resonator. It was honestly annoying to Aura that people seemed to have a problem with the lunar element.
“I think that’s everything,” Shouri spoke up.
Aura watched her brother get up with his Resonator and walk to the counter. There was a small exchange, and then her brother and his Resonator were led into the back. The elder sibling sighed audibly.
“I’m sure they’ll be fine,” Damian told his Maestro.
“It’s not Shouri I’m worried about,” Aura retorted.
Both Shouri and Taika’s curiosity ran amok as they were led into the far back reaches of the Maestro Affairs Office. This section was a lot like a typical doctor’s office, from what Shouri observed. The many open rooms held examination tables with complex machinery. Taika, being far more sheltered, had no frame of reference, and it was all foreign to her.
“So first one, huh?” the technician asked Shouri.
“I guess you could say that,” Shouri replied curtly.
“Hell of a choice for a starter,” the tech noted.
“Sure.”
Sensing Shouri’s unwillingness to continue the conversation, the technician led them into one of the open rooms. “Up here.” He motioned for Taika to sit on the examination table, who complied with the demand after a moment.
With the patient seated, the tech stepped over to the counter in the back and pulled out a small, wand-like device that was stored in one of the drawers. Walking over to the Resonator, he turned on the device. “Head down,” he ordered.
Shouri glared at the tech, resisting the urge to snap at him. Taika, however, quietly complied.
Waving the wand near the back of the Resonator’s neck yielded no reaction from the device. “Looks like we’ll need to install a chip into this one,” the tech noted.
“That’s why we’re here,” Shouri grumbled, rolling his eyes.
“Hm?” The tech looked to the newbie Maestro, not catching what he'd said.
“What does that involve?” Shouri spoke evenly, deciding to mind his manners for now.
“It’s a pretty simple procedure. The chip is inserted behind the head. It’s very quick, maybe a minute at most,” the technician informed the boy.
Shouri looked at Taika. She stared back with a wide gaze, gripping her well-worn pants with trembling fists. As she locked eyes with her soon-to-be Maestro, she slowly nodded, her tension fading--a gesture missed by the technician. “Go ahead,” Shouri conceded.
“We’ll get started, then.”
Turning around, the technician unlocked one of the cabinets and pulled out a container. Upon closer inspection, the container in question was packaged like something one might see at the store. Tearing open the plastic, the tech pulled out two items of interest. The first was a clear-bodied device that showed off the electronics inside. The second--and much more frightening--object was a pre-loaded syringe. Shouri gulped, eyeing the syringe carefully as the tech flicked it a couple of times, needle-side up.
The tech walked behind Taika and forced her head down, holding it in place. He quickly disinfected the soon-to-be injection site with a sanitized wipe. Then, as practiced as one would be with cutlery at dinner, he swiftly made the injection at the base of her skull and released Taika before she could protest.
Instantly, the girl began to sway. “Lean forward,” he told her. Doing as instructed, she hunched over, remaining sitting up.
Shouri rushed to help steady his Resonator. “What did you do?” the new Maestro questioned hesitantly.
The technician went about business as usual, not seeing anything amiss about his treatment of the Resonator or her sudden loss of coordination. He grabbed the clear-bodied device from the counter where he left it and returned to the pair. “Hold this at the back of her head until you hear a beep.”
Shouri stared at the device. He had seen plenty of tuners in the past, given their prevalence in modern society. One had to have a Resonator to have a tuner, and it wouldn't activate unless it was paired, so this would be his first. That was simply how this world functioned. Reaching out, Shouri took hold of the device. The strange material that composed its shell immediately drew upon his very essence--his rhythm. It powered on of its own accord, but didn’t display any information. Only the backlight of the touch screen was illuminated.
The activator rested in Taika. Shouri gripped the device and held it over the back of her head. Sure enough, after a moment, the device beeped as foretold. Pulling it away, he watched the shell slowly darken into a purplish-black color, losing its previous transparency. In the process, the screen began to show various pieces of information as it began to start up for the first time.
“She’ll be uncoordinated for a bit. For full functionality, there’s a particular part of the brainstem the chip is injected into,” the technician explained to the new Maestro.
“That seems kinda dangerous,” Shouri pointed out.
“Nothing to worry about, kid. I do around twenty of these a day on average. She’ll be able to walk with some help in, like, twenty minutes.”
The boy frowned at that answer. It all seemed so unnecessarily rough to Shouri. Then again, he hadn't just had a piece of silicon forced into his brain, so he couldn’t talk. “Thanks,” was what he decided on.
“Since this is your first Resonator, you’ll want to give the manual a once-over,” the technician advised. “Feel free to leave at your leisure, though. We’re pretty slow today.”
And with that, the technician left Shouri and Taika alone. “Are you okay?” asked Shouri.
Taika lifted her head, managing to flash a weak smile to her new Maestro. “Yeah… jush really dishy, Sho." She slurred her words ever so slightly.
“Come on, lie back for a little bit,” Shouri urged his new partner. She giggled quietly as he helped her lie down on the examination table. It wasn’t the most comfortable thing in the world, but it had a bit of padding on it. At least she wasn’t lying on a hard, flat surface.
In the meantime, Shouri began to skim through the tuner’s manual. The first couple of pages talked about post-installation care--pretty simple stuff, from his own admission. It described the lack of coordination directly after the insertion of the chip, and backed up the technician's claim that the dizziness should fade quickly.
Next were instructions on keeping the installation site clean and to avoid showering or bathing for some time after. Shouri noted that the opposite was advised for water elements--a fact he filed away for later use. Lastly, it said to bring the Resonator to an MA Office, should a fever develop within forty-eight hours of the procedure.
Flipping through some more pages, he got to the part he really wanted to dig into: the technology. He was passively familiar with a lot of the functions of the tuner from when his sister got hers. He knew he could talk to Taika whenever he wanted, and could listen to anything she was saying via the use of the two buttons on the left side. It also monitored her vitals--including rhythm--in addition to providing a spell list for him to read off if needed. It was very handy. He continued flipping through the features. Web access, clock, phone--the little device seemed to have it all.
However, his zeal for the new gadget died as soon as he reached the last section. It regarded the bright red button on the lower right-hand side of the device. The red button was referred to as the “override function”. The further Shouri read into it, the more ill he became.
Resonant Over-Ride: Technical Specifications Introduction The Resonant Over-Ride (ROR) button is a function of all standard issue Riterran Tuners under the Resonator Control Law Section 6 Subsection 5.5. This allows the user to control the physical actions of the linked Resonator. This document outlines its specifications, components, and functionalities. Components
Functionality
Safety and Limitations
Conclusion The ROR is a safety mechanism first and foremost, preventing an out-of-control Resonator from harming themselves or others, and should not be used recreationally. Under Resonator Control Law Section 6 Subsection 7, any Maestro causing harm to a Resonator through usage of the ROR function may be liable to prosecution under the fullest extent of the law. If there are any concerns regarding the ROR function, please contact our helpline at 1-988-87491-73812 |
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In essence, it allowed the Maestro to remove the Resonator’s free will whenever they wanted. The book put it in such clinical terms that he couldn’t believe what he was reading. Glancing up, he stared at Taika, who remained lying on the examination table.
He could just press a button, and she’d do whatever he asked? No input from her at all? Was it painful? Could they resist?
This was awful. The more he thought about it, the worse it got. Why did nobody ever talk about this? It seemed like too huge a deal to just ignore and sweep under the rug. He wondered if Aura had ever used it on Damian.
Taika had already pushed herself up. “Are you okay, Sho?” she asked.
Shouri met her concern with sheer horror and mortification.
“Sho?!” She swung off the table to rush to his side. As soon as her feet touched the ground, though, her legs crumbled, and she plummeted to the ground like a rock. Shouri raced over and caught her before she crashed into the tile below.
“Sh-sho…” Her face reddened as she realized she was in her Maestro’s arms.
“Are you okay, Taika?” Shouri asked.
“I-I’m fine! Are you okay?” she turned his question back on him. “You looked upset." She fretted as he eased her to the ground.
He shot a glance towards where he'd tossed the book when Taika fell.
“What’s wrong, Sho?” Taika continued to worry.
With a sigh, Shouri sat her against the exam table. He held out the tuner for her and pointed at the red button with his thumb. “This lets me take control of you,” he quietly admitted.
Taika’s eyes widened. She had heard of such a thing from the novels she read, but she didn’t think it was real. It just seemed too crazy to consider it any more than fiction. Still, the way Shouri had reacted and the tone in his voice spoke volumes. “Wh-why are you telling me this?” she questioned.
“I don’t want to be your Maestro under false pretenses. I didn’t know about this. People don’t talk about it,” Shouri said, laying out his thoughts. “So if you want to leave, you can take this with you,” he offered.
Taika stared at the tuner before her. It hadn’t even been half a day, and she was already being given up? No, this wasn’t Shouri having cold feet about their partnership--he was being considerate of her feelings and autonomy.
“No.” She reached out and wrapped her hands around his. Her eyes glowed with vibrant blue flames as she gazed into his. “I appreciate you being honest, but I don’t have a choice in the matter. I would rather be controlled by you than go back there.”
He could feel it--she meant every word.
And that was alarming, to say the least. He'd found her sweeping the sidewalk on the side of the road, and that was much worse than the possibility of becoming essentially a meat puppet? His curiosity itched something fierce. Just what resided in that mansion that was so bad that she’d take this risk?
He couldn’t refuse her bravery--or foolishness?
Either way...
“If you’ll still have me, knowing all that, I guess I don’t have a choice, now, do I?”