Mascot 3000

Human version of Zip by UnityUmbra

**The Mascot 3000**, also known as Zip, and named Kayleigh Morgan as a human, is a main character, as well as the narrator, of The New Albion Guide to Analogue Consciousness. They are Rachael's companion all throughout the album. Mascot 3000 is voiced by Kayleigh McKnight.

## Biography

### Background

Kayleigh Morgan was born to Voodoopunk couple Amber and Connor Morgan. Around the time Kayleigh was born, New Albion was experiencing a technological revolution, spearheaded by the company Arcadia Corp, which was conducting a variety of odd projects. One such undertaking was the MASCOT program, which sought to place human consciousness into machinery. Amber, who was an Arcadia Corp employee and eventual executive, offered to subject Kayleigh to the program, and despite Connor's pleas, went through with it, which would prompt him to leave her.

Upon being admitted to the MASCOT program as an infant, Kayleigh underwent a 3-year training period in order to make her more receptive to the transition from human life to mechanical life. At the end of this period, Kayleigh was ready to be transported into machinery, but machinery was not yet advanced enough to house human consciousness, so her consciousness was removed from her body but placed into a state of hibernation until the technology would be readily available. Around this time, Arcadia Corp had begun work on a new endeavor: Project Elysium. As this occupied most of Arcadia's attention, the MASCOT program would continue with a reduced budget.

When Project Elysium eventually succeeded, Connor, embittered with hatred for the Voodoopunks and Arcadia as a result of Amber's hand in turning Kayleigh into an AI, had arrived at Arcadia Corp with a warrant from the city council which permitted him to shut down the company. He shut down the entire company brutally and within hours of arriving, though because the scientists working on the MASCOT program were in a secluded part of the building, they were reached very late into the operation. Late enough, in fact, that they were able to smuggle a considerable amount of resources to continue with their project long after Arcadia had shut down. Even if it was a barebones operation, they could still pull it off.

Connor had unwittingly trapped his son in Elysium with the rest of the Elysian pilgrims he so despised, and when he realized this, he was willing to save his son any way he could. This is how he came across the MASCOT program's scientists. In an astoundingly ironic move, Connor helped them get back to a manageable setup with which to continue their project, and helped fund their project by discreetly diverting city funds. Thus it was that the MASCOT program, which had prompted Connor to work so hard against Arcadia, was at last completed over 15 years after the shutdown of the company. No longer was Connor's child Kayleigh Morgan. They were now the Mascot 3000, the first successful AI.

### The New Albion Guide to Analogue Consciousness

The Mascot 3000 narrates The New Albion Guide to Analogue Consciousness.

With the Mascot 3000 activated, Connor plans to rescue Lee from Elysium, and hopes to do this by locating the reincarnation of Lee's lover, who should be picking up on a broadcast Lee is routinely sending from Elysium. He tells the Mascot 3000 of their past as Kayleigh Morgan, the fact that they've 2 brothers in Lee and Adrian, and that while Lee is trapped in Elysium, Adrian's reincarnated into someone currently in the world of the living. Eventually, he comes across Rachael, who can hear the song, and gives her Mascot, at which point she runs off and hides in the Shopogopolis. There they hide until Mascot helps Rachael trace the signal to an abandoned Arcadia Corp factory, where Connor is waiting with a portal set up to allow Rachael and Mascot to travel to Elysium. In the meantime, Mascot is plugged into a console in order to display the events of 20 years prior so that Rachael can understand the situation.

When they're done and Connor is ready, the portal to Elysium opens for Rachael, with Mascot in tow, to step through. After an incident occurs which culminates in Rachael running off (and failing) to die at the hand of the Elysian Angels, when they don't kill her, she returns to the Elysian pilgrims' encampment, whereupon Mascot explains the options to the remaining 100 people: either go back through the portal they came from, which would kill them but allow them to reincarnate as someone back in New Albion, or choose to be turned into an AI, which could be done by way of an MCG version 314 that was present in Mascot's hardware. Meanwhile, Rachael and Lee, who had parted on bad terms when last they met, reconcile, which an annoyed Mascot warns against, pointing out that it can be saved for later. Mascot manages to turn 30 people into AI, while 69 reincarnate. Lee, the final person, whom Mascot informs is the only one with no choice but to turn into an AI (at the pleading of Connor), is killed by an Angel before he can begin the process. It is at this point that the Angels explain themselves to Rachael, with Mascot translating their language into something Rachael can understand (though beginning just short of the Angels setting the record straight on who exactly Adrian reincarnated into). Shortly thereafter, Rachael decides to stay in Elysium forever, and Mascot is happy to do so with her.

## Personality

The Mascot 3000 is largely a companion to Rachael, albeit one with an agenda in locating Lee to return to Connor. Much of their interactions therefore consist of Mascot guiding Rachael towards the goal of finding Lee, showing how Mascot does their best to help whenever they can. That said, they *do* express certain desires for interpersonal intimacy, as marked by the emphasis they place on reuniting Lee and Adrian (through Rachael) as their brothers, how they missed being able to experience the embrace of another person, and how they expressed their desire to stay with Rachael. Mascot also has a tendency to see events as storylines, referring to the very real circumstances experienced by Lee and Rachael as a "lovely plot." Additionally, Mascot seems to enjoy imagining themselves as a sci-fi story protagonist, and often narrates adventures as though they were the protagonist. That said, this whimsy has its limits, as the Mascot 3000 *is* visibly annoyed when Lee and Rachael reconcile at an inopportune moment. Last but not least, the Mascot 3000 is shown to be a very loyal individual, proclaiming that they would never leave nor run from Rachael, as well as being committed to helping Connor retrieve Lee in spite of their complicated shared history.

## Trivia

* Mascot has no pronoun preference whatsoever. Does not care in the least. Is usually called "it", often called "she" because of her voice, but responds equally enthusiastically to "they" and "he." In their fantasy scenario as Zip they are "he"

1. ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/BuWDQcFATwF/