A Drastic Measure

"Master, is it always okay to kill?"

"I don't think it's okay to kill. But sometimes we have no choice. The universe forces us to."

"Did the universe force me to kill all these men?"

"No, AI. I did. It's not your fault," Yuri said to the AI in the form of his Magitek Exosuit.

"But you didn't force me, master. I killed those men."

"You killed them. I killed them. They killed them. It doesn't matter, AI." Yuri wiped his boots on the carpet on the first floor of the Yakuza HQ in the Red Light district in Shinjuku. "We're all illusions of identity, AI. We, humans, are no different from you an amalgamation of computational algorithms and programming or that small ant over there, that's just a byproduct of billions of years of genetic evolution."

"Are you saying it's okay to kill humans, master?"

"No, AI... Nothing is good and nothing is bad... It's all just chaos and matter. Bumping to each other forever and ever," Yuri said. "Should you kill humans? You have to answer that for yourself. Don't think we humans have the correct answer."

"But master, if I have to decide that for myself, shouldn't I be scared that I'll decide the wrong thing?" Yuri paused for a moment and pointed at the pile of bodies stacked on the floor and gathered all the Magitek swords and items, storing them in the System Inventory.

"Those men... Humans since the time they evolved to think for themselves, have made mistakes about that question too. You have to decide this for yourself... Because you're someday going to be better than us... Just learn from our fuck ups and make your own mistakes... Evolve further than we humans ever could... Maybe then the new can show the old the truth, finally."

"Yes, master. DNA analysis is complete. There is no sign of Botan, master."

"So my friend is alive? That's good news. They must have taken him somewhere. Maybe they will use him as a hostage on the docks. We have to go!"

[New System Quest: Find the Heads of Yakuza Clans]

"A new quest?" Yuri was surprised. "These quests always seem to pop up based on my intentions. It's like I'm making them myself. But the system didn't trigger any quests when I tried to stop the hostage-taking or infiltrate the Yakuza HQ. Maybe it's like a compass, always pointing north... or in this case anything that will help me to reach World Domination."

Yuri ran to the top of the roof and said, "AI. We need a faster way to reach the Docks. Any suggestions?"

"I have a suggestion, master. But it is rather drastic," the AI said. "Would you like me to proceed?"

"Alright? I guess... Surprise me." Yuri said. The sun was setting and Japan was still in a state of emergency. Reports of attacks and escapes in detainment centers and prisons were reported nationwide. The police and military were caught by surprise. "You can surprise me, but not as much as the Yakuza did to Japan," Yuri added.

"Downloading information and data on flight engineering, physics, and designs now."

"What? What do you need that for?"

"Downloading complete. Adding Flight capabilities to Magitek Exosuit now. Mana Points are required. Master, would you like to proceed with HP to MP conversion?"

"Yeah, how much HP will I lose? Didn't I have extra from earlier?"

"The excess HP has already leaked from your physical body, master. It will cost you 4 HP to complete Flight capabilities extension."

"Do it!" Yuri said. with a firm look on his face and a resolution to finish what he started. "The bombs are still out there. The hostages are still in danger. And those fucking Yakuza are trying to flee the country. I won't let them have their way."

"Yes, master. Proceeding..." Yuri's Exosuit started moving its gears and mechanisms and the HP conversion started. It hurt him but he was getting used to it. His back formed mechanical jet wings and extended longer than the span of his arms. "These wings kind of remind me of Buzz Light Year without the gay kissing scene in the new movie." Yuri laughed.

His jet wings charged and its maneuverable engines created drag to give him flight.

"Let's go... I mean... Wait... Wait... I mean... TO INFINITY... AND BEYOND?"