Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence - Scene 14: Kim's Mansion. The 4th Encounter

• August 19, 2006
• James Skemp
• philosophy, dvd / movie

[14 Kim's Mansion. The 4th Encounter]

(Togusa:) "Are we actually back in physical reality?"

(Batou:) "There is no way to distinguish reminiscence from true memory. Whatever they are, they can only be analyzed after the fact. The passage of time itself can't be stored, so it's tough. And inevitable, now that our e-brains share external memories. Do your wife and daughter, waiting for you at home, really exist? Or are you, in reality, still single, living in some cheap rented room, only dreaming of that family. Don't you want to verify what actually happened back there?"

"And if you knew almost from the start, why?"

"I had to ascertain his motives. Kim set his trap knowing I'd come calling, inserting the virtual reality to shake us off. That's about the gist of it. Maybe he was the hacker who planted something in my e-brain, making me dance to his tune and blow away my right arm. Just as Ishikawa surmised, not many could have pulled that off. Locus Solus suspects as much."

"So you anticipated all of this."

"Pretended to fall into his trap, then beat him at his own game ... that was my plan. But Kim was pretty sophisticated. I only made it out because of the hallway clue."

"The guardian angel you spoke of ..."

"She's gone. Somewhere beyond that 'rift in the uniform weave of the matrix.' She's definitely alive. Merging somewhere on the vast net, or with the entire domain. Though that's not for me. There are as many paths to proving your existence as there are ghosts. And you've got your daughter. I thought Kim knew other paths too, back when he and I were in the jungle together."

"At least I've figured one thing out."

"What's that?"

"That I'll never cut it as your partner."

"Lost your nerve?"

"No, but to quote you, I've got a daughter to go home to."

"That may be, but you'll still need to pay your way out of here."

"Don't you have enough? We can nail Locus Solus with the data from Kim's e-brain."

"We can only prove he interfered with an investigation plus the ethics violation. Besides, our investigation's officially off the record. So, if we're going to make charges in those gynoid serial murders stick, we need material evidence."

"And Kim's a dead end."

"No, he's not. His ghost may be beyond reach, but his e-brain's still tied to Locus Solus. We've got to settle this case before they clean out their operation.

"There's an old saying, 'When you're neither right nor wrong, it's time to beat the drums and attack.' In other words, when dialogue fails, it's time for violence."

"Hey, this isn't like barging into some yakuza office!"

"Then I won't count on your Mateba revolver for cover. 'Birds seek refuge in the heavens, fish dive deep into the sea.'"

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Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence - Script

• ghost in the shell