Just another day in the office, right?

[unit_8910_wolf]

This place was...peculiar.

And that said a lot when Wolf was sure that he would never have to deal with absurdity again. A world enveloped by the shadows, riddled in the corpses of humanity itself where each day felt like their last. If it weren't for the chrome running underneath his skin, he isn't sure he would have lived more than a day breathing in the morning air without a gas mask and a gun because you never know when you can make eye contact with a shadow waiting to cannabalize away your very existence.

The worst part? That shadow could have worn the face of someone you lost in tragedy and more often than not- the tragic ones always stayed behind. Groaning within the lumps of black that crawled the abandoned earth.

Zenkichi didn't choose this.

And yet. Yet he had to live with it.

"There is an over-abundance of wildcards here. We need to get out of here so I can tamper with the network and narrow them down."

"Interesting," he raises a brow as he looks ahead at Igor. "Sure. This place isn't defined by time or matter. Makes sense. Reminds me of my service with PubSec." He scoffs as he gets up from the sofa and takes a look at the board.

"Unit #8910: we need to get to work. Stop loitering around ugh-"

"...someone took wolf."

---

Choice A: Going out In a Bang

It was business as usual at Big Bang Burger that nestled in the busy corners of Central Street. A faint hum of cheery but repetitive background music plays over the speakers, filling the air alongside the subtle sizzle of patties on the grill and the hiss of soda machines.

A small group of high school students in uniforms sits at one of the tables near the window. They chatter loudly about upcoming exams, one of them stabbing at the pile of fries on his tray absentmindedly. Nearby, an office worker in a wrinkled suit hunches over a single coffee, scrolling through his phone with tired eyes. He barely touches his half-eaten burger.

Zenkichi Hasegawa—Wolf—stood in the entryway, a man out of time and place. His long, tattered tailcoat swayed faintly as the overenthusiastic air conditioning washed over him, kicking up a faint ripple of dust from the folds. He adjusted the black tassels of his sleeves absentmindedly, but his gait faltered as his visor-like console headset flickered with low hums of static—clearly straining to process the normalcy of this environment.

His sharp, calculating gaze swept over the patrons, lingering a beat too long. It was the sheer volume of people that unsettled him. Teenagers laughing. Workers existing. No one was screaming, no one was running for their lives. There weren’t any shadows hunched in the corners, whispering, or disfigured corpses left as grim reminders of what was lost. For someone who had spent years surviving in a wasteland where every movement could mean death, the packed yet blissfully mundane Big Bang Burger felt... claustrophobic.

His fingers twitched at his side. His weaponized arm was so used to pulling triggers that, for a moment, he almost scanned the room for hostiles.

“—No threats detected.”

The voice crackled softly in his ear, artificial and sweet. Akane’s voice—or, at least, the AI approximation of it. Damn Kirijo Group.

“Dad. Stop staring. You look like you’re about to vaporize a middle-schooler.”

Zenkichi blinked and scowled, tearing his gaze away from a startled teenage girl who was gripping her milkshake a little too tightly. He adjusted his collar in a gruff, performative way that didn’t fool anyone.

“Yeah, yeah,” he muttered under his breath. “Not my fault. I haven’t seen this many people in one place who aren’t trying to eat me alive.”

Slowly, cautiously, Zenkichi made his way to the counter. His steps were deliberate, too heavy, the clink of reinforced plating under his boots far too ominous for a place that offered combo deals. As he approached, he realized something bizarre: the crowd was... moving for him.

What the hell? Was he that intimidating? Patrons shifted nervously, parting like the Red Sea to let him through, avoiding eye contact as if he might detonate on sight. He tilted his head in confusion, throwing a hesitant glance over his shoulder.

“You, uh...” Zenkichi cleared his throat awkwardly. “No, you can go ahead. Don’t mind me.”

A young man in a suit and tie froze mid-step, locking eyes with him like a deer caught in headlights before shaking his head vigorously and darting back to his seat.

Zenkichi sighed. Great. Even in a world of synthetic peace, he was still the guy no one wanted to stand near.

“Oh my god, fine—fine, I’ll go ahead!” he grumbled loudly, throwing his hands up in mock surrender. “More burgers for me.”

His attempt at casual bravado was undercut by the sheer awkwardness of the moment, but he pushed forward, squinting at the glowing digital menu above the counter. Rows of pixelated burgers, fries, and soda flashed in neon brilliance, the cheerful cartoon mascot cheerily suggesting combo upgrades.

Zenkichi stared.

And stared.

And stared.

---

Choice B:

Tatsumi Port Island

The iconic architecture of Tatsumi Port Island felt pristine yet desolate, as if frozen just after a day’s end. Zenkichi wandered the eerily clean streets where not a single person remained—save for the massive Ferris wheel at the harbor, its lights flashing on and off, turning slowly despite the lack of power. He stood at its base, hands on his hips. “Yup. Definitely haunted,” he muttered before Akane’s voice chirped in his ear:

“Wild energy spike, Dad. Try the school grounds.”

He sighed loudly, trudging off. “High schools again? That’s where we’re looking for saviors of humanity? At least back in my day, kids weren’t summoning gods between exams.”

Still...this place was the basis of his company, wasn't it?

---

Choice C: NETWORK

Hello everyone,

I’m the 47th Generation Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, model "Unhuman." My unit's designation is #8910-Wolf, but if you want a nickname, you can just call me Wolf. Though, don't get too excited. Someone else already took that one. So, just to keep it simple, you can call me Zenkichi Hasegawa.

Now, judging from the looks of things, I wouldn't be surprised if there are other versions of me running around here. Not that I’m thrilled about it, but you never know with these kinds of situations. Used to work as a cop in the Public Safety Bureau... but not anymore, so don't go looking for some kind of badge-wielding vigilante. I read another guy getting butchered for exactly that so- let’s keep things civil, alright?

As for this place... I’ll be blunt: I’m still wrapping my head around just how bizarre this all is. It’s not exactly normal, and while I get why some of you might not be thrilled with my presence here, I’m not here to stir up trouble. So long as you don’t provoke me, I won’t be doing the same.

But listen up—the number of teenagers with multiple Personas running around? Yeah, I’m seriously concerned about that. It's one thing to be a kid, but to have this much power at that age? Wildcards in our world were people who had been trained years on end to perfect their personas and we have rare instances of them in my world. It makes me nervous. Not gonna lie.

One more thing: if anyone here has that EMMA app, do yourselves a favor and delete it. Trust me on this one. Where I’m from, that thing led to some serious hell for humanity. It’s part of why we ended up where we did, and I'm not about to let it happen again. Just... delete it, alright?

Anyway, I’ll leave it at that. Just don’t expect me to be a walking charity, but I’m not looking to start fights either.

Unit #8910: Zenkichi Hasegawa

Comments

locked to zenkichi

[willowandoak]

[ The message comes in less than one minute after Zenkichi's network post goes live. ]

remove the ps or youll get us all killed

[rookandhound]

its not like i had some means of seeing the future and knowing some guy would show up wanting the codename wolf

whats wrong with emma

A

[fogboundcrow]

Hello, Zenkichi. There is now a young teenage boy approaching with a raised eyebrow. Really, he doesn't normally eat at Big Bang Burger, but he was too intrigued not to follow.

"Another adult. There's a surprise."

And so... distinctly dressed. Fascinating.

burger burgers burgers

[paysforall]

"Justice Banger over by the Crossing really improved the fish sandwich, but against my will, I must admit that I prefer the chicken here."

It's entirely possible to have not picked out the single real person in the group of cognitions - indeed, Zenkichi might come away with the impression that the young man with an affected casual aura appeared out of thin air, some time when he wasn't watching the door too closely. (Thresholds are a great place to switch between planes, after all.)

For his part, Shrike - a 21 year old Goro Akechi dressed in skinny jeans and a shirt straight off the racks at some fancy goth store, but other than the age and dress, 'normal' by the standards of this place - doesn't seem ruffled at all by the new arrival. He's got one hand hooked into his belt loops and the other is holding his phone at an angle (there's a Big Bang Burger ordering app visible on it that probably didn't actually exist in 2016, before the era of Everything Delivers). Without actually waiting for a response, he finishes, "The burgers are practically identical, though, which means not getting your hopes up for high quality."

(Despite how casual he seems, the interruption is strategic, in its own way - sometimes the best way to disarm someone, mentally, is to interrupt their brooding cycle with a direct address.)

Locked to Zenkechi

[gorobo]

[The generation number almost makes Falcon fall over. What the actual fuck.

It is, however, migitated somewhat by sheer curiosity and a flicker of excitement at the possibility of meeting a new sibling unit.

He's not really the best person to introduce people to this place, but as a fellow weapon, he can't help but be interested.]

Hello. I suppose it's prudent I introduce myself before anything else: My name is Goro Akechi, unit #018 of the 5th generation of Anti Shadow Suppression Weapons. My codename here, however, is Falcon. You may have noticed it on the board.

I can't help but be curious, though; 47th generation? What caused the Kirijo Group to continue developing anti shadow weapons? As far as I'm aware, in most worlds, they stopped after the 9th generation... a combination of our penchant for growing actual free will, and the destruction of most of our brother and sister units, from what I can tell.

Unless you were not developed by the Kirijo Group at all, that is? I suppose I wouldn't count out the possibility. The technology to make us isn't immune to being stolen, after all. I was forced to work with the police myself until fairly recently... did they make you?

Apologies. Aside from myself, Aigis and Lyssi are the only other units around, so I suppose I am curious about you- especially considering your generation number is so far removed from ours.

Either way, welcome to... this. If you have questions, I'll do my best to answer them.

C

[warped_ken_amada]

Welcome, Hasegawa-san.

From what little hints you have dropped, your homeworld seems quite unlike any other. Would you mind sharing some details about it?

Tatsumi Port Island

[herewardbound]

As Zenkichi stood before the towering structure that was Tartarus-

a hole opened in space, ringed by crackling violet energy, and through it stepped- a Demon. More than two meters tall, eyes luminous red in the gloom of the Dark Hour, and armed, heavily enough to look to be expecting combat.

The creature paused, one foot over the threshold, blinking as he took in what he was seeing.

"Uhhh. Hi."