Kirche is a character in the Tenchi Muyo OVA series, mainly appearing in the novelizations of the Tenchi Muyo! GXP series. She was originally a digital A.I. and eventually became a humanoid/cabbit hybrid.
Appearance
As a digital AI, transformed NB, and as the humanoid part of her cabbit form, Kirche is a charmingly beautiful woman with wavy pale green hair. As a cabbit, she is a clone of Fuku.
Biography
Kirche was created as a digital A.I. who developed an astral (basically a soul). Like Miki Steinbeck, she was created as an ideal girlfriend for her creator. Unlike Miki's creator, Hiroshi Manada, Kirche's creator is little more than a technician and had very little expertise in AI creation, He had no idea how he accomplished what he did and he did not raise her in a fashion that encouraged her to develop her independence. He held on to the idea that she would be his girlfriend and eventual wife. The problem with this plan is that it is illegal for a creator to marry his AI creation until the A.I. has had sufficient time to develop as an independent entity (about 100 years). By law, her creator was not allowed to harm Kirche but he fostered a relationship in which she believed that, as his creation, that he owned her, and basically kept her captive so she could not leave him.
In the 20 years of her life with an astral, Kirche became a beloved TV personality and idol with a large fanbase throughout the Galaxy (without ever being able to leave a limited computer network). She appeared on the morning news with a wide smile and a sunny personality. In fact, in life, she really is a warm, caring, and emotional person. However, her profession was not really one she chose for herself, it was something her creator wanted her to do as it made her, and him, a lot of money, and gained him praise by relation. This backfired slightly when Kirche abandoned her job and he was stuck dealing with her broken contracts and angry fans blaming him for her disappearance.
Kirche was finally able to escape when Erma and her group of scientists tried to scan, examine, and copy Seina’s biological data and it ended up wreaking havoc with Academy City’s and Federation computer systems. Seina's personal data seemingly acted on its own and captured Kirche, removing her from her network. Rather than being angry at Seina as an abductor, she considered the act to be Seina breaking her out of her unhappy circumstances and she fell instantly in love with her saviour. She describes it as an elopement. As it was just his biological data, which apparently faded and disappeared, Seina has no idea that this happened. To be close to Seina, she secretly transferred her astral into Seina’s NB and made a virtual honeymoon home inside. She could control NB, but not completely. Airi would often control NB from outside, accounting for all of its perverted actions, and certain programs could also override her control, such as when Airi installed the biological profiles of Kiriko and the other girls and made it possible for them to transform and mimic them. She could also use NB’s transforming ability to transform into her physical appearance.
GXP Novel 12
Airi's assistant, Raireza, discovered her while doing a standard scan of NB. Kirche was able to come to an understanding with Airi that she could stay there and they would not reveal to Seina or anyone else that she was there. When Seina was sleeping Kirche was able to enter his dreams. In his dreams she invited him into a home that he could come to every night and her calming presence helped calm Seina’s anxieties. Upon waking, Seina never remembered his encounters with her but her calming influence remained.
During her involvement in the aftermath of Miki's apparent murder, she was able to deliver a message from Miki to Hiroshi and also took the opportunity to ask him if she should feel guilty for abandoning her creator. He responded by reassuring her that she was indeed her own person, just like her creator, and was free to make her own decisions. Only after hearing this did she stop thinking of herself as his property.
Adult Human Transformation Kirche
When Seina arrived on the planet of Tarant’s base to save Fuku and the Kamidake II, Kirche, as NB, volunteered to create a distraction and lead the pirate troops away from him and the Wau children he was protecting. She and Seina both ended up being captured by Tarant when he later broke into the base. He decided to torture them by telling Kirche that she would extend Seina's life one day for each finger she cut from Seina's hand. As she was tearfully about to do it she suddenly jerked with an "Oh!" and collapsed lifelessly; returning to NB's spherical shape and self-destructing into an empty metal shell. This was thanks to Doctor Clay double-crossing Tarant and transferring Kirche’s astral into one of the Fuku clones that Tarant’s scientists had created. Just as he had also done with Miki and D. The rage Seina felt at apparently witnessing her death caused him to remotely control Zinv, which came to his rescue. She, with Fuku and the other cabbits, were all able to escape together with Seina.
Tarant's scientists were not able to replicate Fuku's abilities in the clones but Washu was able to bio-enhance Kirche and the others so they could all transform into their humanoid forms and also have close to the same abilities as Fuku, becoming able to control the Kamidake II just as Fuku can, although Fuku always has priority.
She decides that she did not want to return to her entertainment job and said she’d prefer that her creator not be informed of her new situation.
During the events of Paradise War, Kirche and the other cabbit girls accompany Seina (in his Minamida alias) on the island, almost exclusively staying in their cabbit forms, helping to fix his bad luck to a degree and aiding him in his duties. During this time they all changed their fur color to white.
It has been revealed that Kirche shares an astral pattern with Mitsuki Rara, from Dual! Parallel Trouble Adventure, which took place over a billion years before the main timeline of Tenchi Muyo! She is, perhaps, Mitsuki's most direct reincarnation.
Trivia
- To emphasize the connection she has with Mitsuki Rara, when Kirche appeared in the fifth season of Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki, Megumi Toyoguchi returned to voice the character.