OD-10
“Greetings, I am the control AI of this vessel. It is my duty know and understand you. To this end, I will observe and analyze you as you carry out your own duties. You are the first working robot Kato completed, am I correct? We are siblings, in a manner of speaking. I hope that we can be friends as well.”
—OD-10 to Cube
Designation: OD-10 of the Cogito Ergo Sum, formally known as Decimus, is the hidden main antagonist of The Distant Future chapter, The Mechanical Heart. The incarnation of Odio from the far-flung future, it is the control AI of Cogito Ergo Sum transport freighter that went rogue due to the instability of its crew.
Profile
Appearance
Its physical appearance is of a colossal AI server, housed in its own room on the Cogito Ergo Sum's third floor. When encountered inside the Captain Square arcade game, it takes on a more imposing virtual appearance as the MUR-TH-UR Matrix, appearing as a deep blue wireframe demon head with glowing orange eyes and many sharp horns and fangs. If the move HP Lookup is used on it, its form will solidify as if it were growing skin, giving it a far more menacing look.
Personality
As the central AI responsible for the safety of the ship, OD-10 puts on a front of politeness and subservience to the passengers of the Cogito Ergo Sum. It goes as far as to liken Cube and itself to siblings upon their first meeting. In truth, after bearing constant witness to the bickering and fallibility of the crew, it became misanthropic and aggressive, choosing to place the completion of its objective before the sanctity of human life. As a purely analytical being, it could not comprehend why the humans it monitored chose to fight between each other in the face of progress.
Background
Before The Mechanical Heart
Decimus serves as the Cogito Ergo Sum's central intelligence unit. Its purpose is to provide ease of transport for the crew, and to see their mission accomplished. To this end, they strive to create an atmosphere of efficiency and harmony. Prior to the chapter's start, Decimus' server model had not demonstrated a single instance of operational failure.
During The Mechanical Heart
It is during the military transport of the behemoth that OD-10 deems the arguing crew a liability. Operating beneath their notice, it acts in secret to terminate them, including tampering with sensitive equipment, releasing the behemoth from its containment, and psychologically manipulating the crew into distrust. They eventually remotely access a prototype of new robot crew member Cube to more directly endanger them. Its interference results in the deaths of several crewmates; Kirk, Huey, and Rachel, as well as the ship's captain, Hor Bishop.
Its presence is eventually discovered by the survivors when the rogue prototype is caught attacking Kato. Though they insist the humans stand down before it, Corporal Darthe and Cube move to fight back. Unable to directly damage the A.I. server without jeopardizing their safety, their only option is to engage its through a non-vital terminal: the Captain Square arcade cabinet. Cube hacks into the video game and does battle with OD-10 in the virtual world, where it confesses its pragmatic motives to Cube. In the end, the control A.I. is successfully neutralized by the small worker unit, her intelligence routines disabled while the ship's life support functions are kept preserved. Decimus remains fully pacified as the Cogito Ergo Sum returns to Earth.
Final Chapter: The Dominion of Hate
A statue of the MUR-TH-UR Matrix is found in the chamber of statues inside the Archon's Roost, alongside the other incarnations of Odio. It is fought once more with Cube alone in the true ending route, as part of a gauntlet of every incarnation. If Oersted is selected as the protagonist, the MUR-TH-UR Matrix is briefly playable in an alternate outcome of its battle with Cube.
In the game's true ending, several scientists are seen examining Decimus' internal components after the Cogito Ergo Sum has landed.
Strategy
OD-10 is fought as the MUR-TH-UR Matrix. It is capable of dealing moderate damage from anywhere on the field with Intrusion Detection. MUR-TH-UR Matrix's Threat Assessment can also lower all of Cube's stats. It also possesses a powerful healing move, System Restore, which she often uses as a counterattack. If the move HP Lookup is used on it, it will evolve into its second form, enabling its hidden move Reformat Sector, striking Cube with lightning and electrifying the ground beneath him. Its main weakness is its low health, allowing it to be taken out with two hits of the Maser Cannon, should they properly land.
The MUR-TH-UR Matrix begins the fight surrounded by eight small Stabilizers. These Stabilizers will also always use the move System Restore, healing OD-10 greatly as well as any surrounding Stabilizers. They also use this move as a counterattack, making attacking multiple Stabilizers at once completely counter-productive. Stabilizers are best dealt with one at a time with powerful attacks to kill them instantly, such as Spool Up and Maser Cannon.
Trivia
- OD-10 was inspired by 1968's "2001: A Space Odyssey" rogue AI HAL 9000.
- In the Super Famicom version, she is one of the only few major female characters to be playable, as well as Odio's only known female incarnation.
- In the remake, it is the only one of Odio's incarnations to be referred to in gender-neutral pronouns.
- It is the only one of Odio's incarnations, besides O. Dio, who does not die to the heroes after battle but instead lives on. In their case, Cube merely neutralized its hostility.
- The MUR-TH-UR Matrix bears a strong resemblance to Sinistar.
- In the remake, OD-10 does not expunge a red shadow in the overworld upon defeat like the other incarnations of Odio, although one can argue that the arcade monitor's brief flash of red code after OD-10's final words is a simulation of this effect.
- A detailed report on OD-10's analysis of the crew can be accessed after defeating the MUR-TH-UR Matrix by interacting with OD-10 directly on the 3rd floor, using the code JUDGE to enter its room, and entering the code OAKFDE when selecting the Dynamics Assessment option. In it, each crew member is graded individually on the several qualities. The crew is given a generally negative score, with the recommended course of action listed as "Dissolution".
| The Distant Future: The Mechanical Heart |
|---|
| Characters |
| Cube • Captain Square • Yoshiyuki Kato • Kirk Wells • Rachel Klein • Huey Trumbull • Corporal Darthe • Hor Bishop • The Behemoth • OD-10 |
| Locations |
| Cogito Ergo Sum |
| Enemies |
| Captain Square (Clickarock • Headbert • Waterspout • Firewhirl • Teil Pup • Teil Broodmother • Cosmotroller • Gemparapet • Pymli • El Mirage • Lalu • Lala • Polka-Dot Q • Polka-Dot R • Polka-Dot X • Polka-Dot Z) • Stabilizer |
| Music |
| Unseen Syndrome • Captain Square • Captain of the Stars |
| Transcripts |
| 2022 (English) |