[UA] The Metal Eaters (was Steampunk)

[Royal Minister of Stuff]

--- Mario Magallanes <aegis at wanadoo.es> wrote:
 (he
> saved the life of a child by turning him into an
> automata; that's why
> the Sleepers want him) 

Hmm... That's an interesting moral delimma.  Is
turning someone into a machine really saving their
life, or does such a transubstatiation make someone
into a new kind of being.

I know the idea of a mystery cult which resurrects
people as machines has been thoroughly explored
elsewhere (the cyclopes in "City of Lost Children" are
the first example which spring to mind.)  But what
about someone who rebuilds a person as an act of
kindness.

I remember, back in the early days of Vampire (sorry
to bring this up again, but I don't have a better
reference), players would always try to save the life
of a cherished NPC or fellow non-vampire player by
turning them into a vampire or ghoul.  The best
players always seemed to refuse.  There's a scene like
that in Kim Newman's Anno Dracula.  A guy who works at
a charity hospital for screwed up vampires gets beaten
almost to death and a vampiress tries to "bring him
over" to save his life.  The man refuses and dies.

I've got my own theories, but I wonder why is that? 
Why would some people rather die than be a machine or
a monster?

=====
-- Rp Bowman, Royal Minister of Stuff
The Electronic Nation of Yokeltania:
http://www.geocities.com/yokeltania/

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