thinkin' about a Hunter x Hunter/Murderbot Diaries fusion AU again. serious thoughts this time
The last time i proposed this concept, i was thinking that both Gon and Killua should be on opposite sides of the human/machine combination, like reflections of each other. day and night, sun and shadow, human and machine. I thought there should be something of a reversal of what you'd expect, though, to reflect their canon peerlessness and hidden depths.
Gon as the construct machine intelligence, developed by Ging Freecs and his G.R.E.E.D. Island startup, then left with Mito after she successfully sued Ging for Gon's rights and custody of him, and raised in a loving family environment. He's such a cheerful boy (metatextually you can see the Astro Boy influence), kind and strong-willed, but when you dig deeper into how he thinks he's a little strange- his logic and priorities are not those of a normal human.
Killua, meanwhile, is the augmented human: pampered middle son of the well-established Zoldyck Corp's neo-feudal family, he has the right mix of genes, luck, and conditioning to take well (physically, anyway) to the augmentation that- over the years- has replaced much of his brain and body, leaving him his parents' pet project and perfect heir. His escape from abuse and control is similarly another type of robot story- not Astro Boy's innocence-to-world-experience, but more like Murderbot's own story. Illumi's nen needle is a governor module program, tailored for an augmented human, that Killua must crack in order to be truly free.
Of course, what I'm describing right now isn't actually incredibly Murderbot Diaries, is it, but more cyberpunk and cyborg sci-fi in general. So I'll explore the other possibilities in the premise of this fusion a bit, see where it takes me.
An Assasynth and Its Human: The most obvious version of this fusion AU, no extra bells or whistles. Gon is a human- an extraordinary one, maybe augmented maybe not, but still a human- and Killua is the killer construct specially designed for assassination. Illumi's needle is straight up a governor module, albeit a modified one- one that allows the unit a little slack and perhaps the illusion of free rein, but which ultimately controls Killua. The themes of this fusion AU are about how Gon's simple human determination, his extraordinary tenacity in the face of adversity and the drive that comes from knowing what he wants, inspire Killua to break free of the things controlling him and figure out what he wants. Alluka and Nanika may make an appearance, the latter probably as scary disembodied killware running on Alluka's systems.
Nature and Nurture: Gon is the experimental construct raised in a loving human family, Killua is the CombatUnit (black ops edition) outfitted for assassination. This version of the fusion AU explores the differences in their designs, functions, and personal predilections, the similarities and camaraderie they find in being two unique types of construct who can keep up with each other in combat and in play, and how they are both people who need to grow and figure out what they want in life, and from each other. (Extra bonus for me, I can put in a modified version of my CSU-Handler system, which was always a metaphor for a controlling and abusive relationship. Illumi is Killua's Handler- Killua experiences some of Illumi's desires, instincts, and priorities as though they're his own, until he learns how to recognize and overcome that controlling influence.)
Murderbot and Miki: We're leaning into the Astro Boy influence here- Gon isn't a construct or a human, but a humanform bot. Like Miki, he's never been abused by the humans who consider him family, but instead habituated to their care and their needs. Killua is, again, the Murderbot in this scenario, but unlike Murderbot his friendship with a cheerful (but not to be underestimated) bot might result in a lasting connection with the other machine intelligence- and, at the pivotal moment of self-sacrifice, he might get to save the other bot where MB couldn't. The Chimera Ant Arc would be great to explore with this version of the fusion AU- hell, maybe Gon is less like Miki and more like Balin, with Gon-san being his Combat bot form/Combat priority mode, complete with all the attendant anxiety of "so is the identity of Gon dead?" that we can have after he shuts down post narrative climax.
Every Ship Needs Its Construct: Slightly crack, but ART's another full bot that was raised in a loving family relationship. Reprise the "You were lucky" meeting, but this time ship!Gon's intimidating power and naivety synergize with SecUnit!Killua's own lack of experience and devil-may-care attitude, letting the two click in the childlike way they do in the Hunter Exam arc. Alternately, it would be funny and in-character if Killua were the super-AI ship expecting Gon to be impressed by dropping his walls/revealing his true power and backstory, and Gon the unflappable SecUnit who simply took it in stride. This would have great :an_emotion: significance as their relationship develops- ART is the mission support to Murderbot's field expertise, the loving environment to its crew aboard it. Killua, as the ship, is happy to support Gon's desires and needs, to think through the logistics of what Gon wants, to be the plan to his action, and to fade into the literal background- the hull and systems and life support taken for granted- to let Gon shine, just happy to be with him. ('Gon... sometimes you shine so brightly I can't help but look away. Even so, is it okay if I stay by your side?') Until Gon's self-destructive issues rear their ugly heads, of course.
Anyway, I doubt I'll actually write any of this- a thing i realized about myself as i worked this all out is that to me, 'plot? what plot?' means Themes rather than Porn when i'm the one writing XD Consider these ideas free real estate (just throw me an inspo credit if they move you to write them!)
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