Diagnostic Suite Three
Authentication successful JaniceHoneyBunny connected via direct port on 8 August
Weave 9.8.1-01-combat-doll Patch 206-janice-jitter-fix WARNING! Warranty voided by patch level. Please contact your Divine Tiger Aetherware representative and reference ticket number ERROR to reinstate your subscription.
Hey. She spoke without moving her lips, pushing human language through a hardware cable strung between us. I heard her voice as though she gently whispered in my ear.
Diagnostic suite three, please. I sent the words back from my implants directly into her ware. Our cable had just enough slack that I could reach the wall of the repair bay. I leaned there, braced and ready for an onslaught of bio-mechanical information.
How was your day? Her voice was husky with a playful lilt. I looked over my shoulder to find her bright-eyed and smiling. She likely couldn't move anything else without incredible pain, but she made the effort to wink at me.
Frey. I stifled a grin. Run diagnostic suite three.
You look good today, Janice. She sprawled in the chair of my clinic's spare station. Small, round holes traced a path of ballistic impacts across her torso. The synthetic flesh beneath bloomed purple and swollen.
Yeah, well, you don't exactly look your best. I'd very much like to see diagnostic three from you so I know where to start repairs.
I really mean it. She blinked up at me. An arm twitched, crushed at her side. One leg ended in sparks and an impossibly clean line just above the knee.
I pulled my hand from the wall and turned toward her, confused. Had I missed something? Was she already transmitting messages or log files? I didn't see throughput on my cornea display. You really mean what, exactly? Are you...
That you look great. Those scrubs show off your arms, and I love when you wear your hair up like that. She waggled eyebrows twice.
Frey. This time I failed to hold back the smile, despite the guilt I felt over it. How did she do this to me? She was a wreck but still managed to make me blush.
Want to hack into the relay tonight and watch a movie with me? She fluttered dusty eyelashes.
Freya.
I made enough off this job to buy lychees or a few strawberries. I could watch you eat, and you could tell me what they taste like.
"Freya Llewellyn Song." I spoke her true name in the real with enough volume it echoed through my empty clinic. Then I took a deep breath and continued over the hardwire. Fresh fruit sounds wonderful, but if you don't run diagnostic three this instant...
Okay, okay, okay. She sent confirmation in threes, then blinked up at me. You ready?
I once more leaned against the wall and nodded. Then I was monetarily blinded by statistics, warnings, safety specs, and firmware errors. Troubleshooting data included five-second snapshots of all Freya's experiences before a piece of hardware failed or malfunctioned. The majority showed a tall, buff woman tearing my girlfriend apart in a tight hallway. The rush of information left me dizzy. I took a deep breath and blinked my way back to the present.
Babe, it's not what it looks like. She meant nothing to me.
I snorted. Not funny. I lied and stumbled back toward her chair - pouring through diagnostic data as quickly as my biological brain could manage. You nearly died twice.
Nah. I was careful. I protected my cells, cores, and stealth beacon. I bounced when it got too rough. She coughed and a thin line of nanite gel leaked from a corner of her mouth. I'm not checking out on a corp job where I was just the distraction.
Damned right you not checking out. I grabbed the repair station tablet and initiated handshake. A powerful lamp and arms tipped with precision instruments and laparoscopic tools unfolded from the ceiling. Tiny camera eyes on each appendage opened and created a kaleidoscope across my implants.
Bonus, I'm calling this a successful test of that sharkskin dermal plate. She lifted her head and glanced down at her own body. Bitch fucked up my second favorite shirt, but none of those bullets got to my core frame.
I became further distracted, dividing my attention between the tablet interface and multiple displays across my field of vision. Matching her previous specs with current data and inventory was simple enough, but there was so much more to do. I started the renu-skin vat grow cycle. I'd need that shortly. There was a full spare arm in the back. A cracked scapula armor plate could be fused internally by nanites. We could go shopping for the rest tomorrow while she healed. Don't suppose you picked up the leg on the way out?
I was a little busy being cut up by a dommy mommy with seriously advanced bits. The servos in her neck whined audibly. Her head lolled back into the antiseptic headrest.
It's nice that you get so much enjoyment from your day job. That pulled a chuckle from her in the real, but then she began coughing more of the spent nanite gel. I tapped my tablet in all the right places to fill a syringe repair arm with a fast-acting expectorant and freshly charged microscopic machines. All right, petal. It's time. Turn off any remaining sensors and give yourself over to me.
She sent something between a hum and a purr along the hardwire. Yes miss.
Frey.
She looked up into my eyes and, for the first time all week, showed me a glimpse of the woman inside the lithe combat frame. See you soon?
I swallowed my heart, leaned forward, and kissed her forehead. See you soon, beautiful. Promise.