Bubblegum Crisis and its characters belong to AIC. I just borrowed them for
my nefarious purposes.
If you're curious as to what happened before this story, then you can find
the previous stories (Passages and Scars) at my web page.
I guess I should also warn you that this fiction contains adult scenes
between women. If that disturbs you, delete it.
Changes
Part 1
________________________________
By She Hulk (shehulk@neocom.net)
Mackie yawned widely and stretched, surveying the scene before him with
appreciative eyes. The afternoon was hot and humid, making the air feel
heavy and thick, inducing everyone who had gathered around the pool with a
deep languor. Nene was laid out on the recliner beside his, her bright pink
bikini her only attire. She had dozed off a little while ago and was now in
eminent danger of being burned. Mackie hit the button on the side of her
lounger and a large umbrella rose and unfurled to shade them both. Priss
did the same with the pool chairs she and Sylia occupied.
The summer sun beat down relentlessly and he felt the beads of sweat
working their way down his back as he studied Priss out of the corner of
his eye. The blue speedo suit left nothing to his imagination and he was
rapidly coming to the conclusion that too much of a good thing could be bad
as he shifted uncomfortably. Mackie stood up and plunged into the pool. The
water wasn't much cooler but at least it gave him a chance to recover. A
few laps later and he got out of the pool and splished his way back to the
chair.
He turned in time to see Sylia execute a perfect dive into the pool, the
water barely shimmering at her entry. The sleek silver bathing suit
faithfully traced every curve and he pursed his lips in a silent whistle.
Linna, who was returning from her trip to the kitchen, paused long enough
to rap him on the head with a quick hand. "Better watch that, Mackie!" She
laughed at his flush and set the tray she was bearing down on the table.
Nene stirred at the sounds of tinkling ice. "Hmmm?" She yawned and
stretched just like a cat in the sun, from toes to fingertips, arching her
body up and off the chair. Her bikini top valiantly fought to maintain her
modesty as Mackie fervently prayed it would fail. "Oooh tea!" She gulped
the cold, sweet liquid with obvious enjoyment and Mackie's eyes never left
her throat. A small, strangled sound escaped him and he quickly got to his
feet. "I, uh, got some things to do." He beat a hasty retreat and Nene
stared after him, confused. "Huh? What things?"
Priss laughed softly as she claimed two glasses for herself and Sylia. "I
think it was too much for him." Linna snickered and sat down in Mackie's
abandoned seat. Nene blinked sleepily. "The heat, you mean? It is horrible
isn't it? I wish this heat wave would end!"
For over two weeks temperatures had soared into the upper 90's and stayed
there. The unbearable heat was causing complications all over the city as
cooling units were cranked to full. While there weren't any power losses,
that being almost impossible, the power had 'dipped' several times. These
dips were being blamed for the sudden rise in computer and boomer
malfunctions that seemed to be spreading throughout the city. Tempers were
rising and the police had their hands full.
Oddly enough, the Knight Sabers themselves had been largely unoccupied
through this period. The ADP could handle the boomers that were
malfunctioning and no one else seemed to need their services. This being
the case, Sylia had declared a holiday and invited everyone over to enjoy
the pool. That had been two days ago. No one had seemed inclined to go home
since Sylia's was cooler than their own places and she didn't seem to mind.
Sylia surfaced near the edge of the pool and slicked her hair back,
squeezing out the water. She reached up to grasp the ladder and found a
silver hand instead. Her gaze moved up the metal arm to meet Priss' amused
eyes. "Need a hand?" Priss pulled her out of the pool and into her arms
with a single, smooth motion. Sylia took the towel she handed her with a
smile of thanks and acknowledged the slow stroke of her hip with a quick wink.
Priss laughed and handed her a glass. Her fingers clicked against the
glass, drawing Sylia's gaze to her arm again. Priss frowned slightly, but
said nothing as they returned to their chairs. She waited until everyone
was settled again before questioning Sylia. "Okay, what's wrong?"
Sylia glanced up in surprise. "Sorry?"
Priss held up her cybernetic arm and waved the fingers. "You keep staring
at my arm like something's wrong."
"No, nothing is wrong. I was just thinking about an idea I had." Everyone
except Sylia groaned and she looked at them in question. "What?"
"Every time you get an 'idea' I wind up without an arm for a week." Priss'
tone was exasperated but her expression was one of amusement. She knew that
anything Sylia did would only be to her benefit, but she couldn't resist
teasing her lover. Just a little. "But I guess I'll make the sacrifice."
Linna's laugh was derisive. "Oh, poor little Priss!"
Priss scowled at her stuck out her tongue. Nene felt compelled to side
with Linna and did so by pulling down her lower eyelid and sticking out her
own tongue. "Bleeeh!"
Sylia cleared her throat and waited for the woman to remember that they
were adults. Or were supposed to be. "If I might continue?" The laughter
subsided. "It's nothing major like last time, Priss. I think it might be
possible to increase the range of the scan-." She was cut off by the quick
shake of Priss' head.
"No way! It's all I can do to keep up with the data I get now. If you
increased the range then it would fry my brain." Coming to grips with the
implants and artificial limb had been hard enough, but the fight for sanity
under the constant bombardment of data that streamed through the scanners
was sometimes more than she could deal with.
Sylia's look was filled with understanding. She knew the things Priss
didn't tell her and had been trying to find a solution to the problem for
months. "I understand that, Priss. I think I might be able to give you more
control as well. It would only take a few adjustments and the addition of a
few new components." She didn't add that the operation would actually take
about ten hours, as the arm had to be disassembled for the new circuits to
be placed. What Priss didn't know wouldn't hurt her.
"Sylia?" Mackie was standing in the doorway. "Could you come here a
second?" His tone was bland; his expression was slightly concerned though.
Sylia stood up and smiled at the others. "Back in moment."
Priss watched her walk away and shot a glance at Linna. Sylia pulled the
glass door shut behind her and Mackie as they went inside. Priss sighed and
stretched, her cybernetic limb extended toward the door. "Hmmm. Don't you
hate it when they seem to try and keep stuff from us?" Priss felt the
scanners in her arm reaching out towards the building. Data flowed swiftly,
the structure and composition of the glass doors. Priss ignored this and
pushed the scanners further. Ah. Body temperatures. Now came the tricky
part, separating the audio from everything else. Her brow furrowed deeply
as she fought to narrow the field.
Linna watched the utter concentration on Priss' face and shook her head.
She didn't think that Sylia had had this in mind when she'd designed the
scanners. Sweat began to trickle down Priss' forehead. "Don't hurt yourself."
Priss grinned quickly. There. She could just make it out. "-jump to
conclusions." Sylia's voice was strained. Through the glass Priss could see
Mackie shaking his head. "I'm not. We can't ignore these reports, Sylia. It
sounds like father's theory might be coming true." A long pause. "If it is,
then this would mean-"
Sylia's hand swept through the air in a sharp dismissive motion. "I know
what it would mean, Mackie. Chaos. The industrial equivalent of the end of
the world." She exhaled. "We're just speculating at this point, though."
Mackie shoved an impatient hand through his hair. "Exactly! Let's see what
we can find out. Nene can hel-" Sylia was shaking her head. "Why not?
Sylia, we'll have to tell them eventually. They have to know, especially
Priss."
Sylia's laugh was harsh. "Mackie, I've almost lost Priss twice because of
boomer technology. What do you think her reaction is going to be this?" She
turned away from him and stared blindly outside. "Let me find a way to tell
her so that she doesn't immediately kill me," her voice fell to a whisper.
"Or leave me."
Priss dropped her hand, stood up and strode quickly to the pool.
Linna watched her as she dove with a knife-like precision and began to
swim laps as if being chased. "Uh oh." She turned to Nene. "Why do I get
the feeling that our holiday is about to be interrupted?"
Nene groaned and threw a towel at her.
<*><*><*><*><*>
Sylia carefully sealed the last seam of the arm and then lifted it back
into place. The quick snap and the almost indistinguishable hum signaled
that everything was at least connected properly and receiving power. She
only hoped that the new scanners would operate according to specification.
She reached for the pressure syringe and held it up to the light. The tiny
nanobots that it contained were invisible to the naked eye, but incredibly
powerful. They had been programmed to perform specific tasks and once
injected they would tie the scanners into Priss' optic nerves. It should
allow Priss to focus on an object and scan it. Some of the more complex
scans would still require touch, but there would be more control there as
well. And if Mackie were right then maybe they would help protect her.
"You never said anything about a shot." Priss watched the syringe's
approach suspiciously, and then looked Sylia directly in the eyes. Tell
me, she silently urged. Trust me.
Sylia just smiled reassuringly. "It's just a precaution." She was still
not sure Priss would let her do this if she told her the truth so she
didn't. Sylia took Priss' normal arm and injected the nanobots.
Priss winced, watching the golden liquid disappear into her body. "A
precaution against what?" Sylia didn't immediately answer; instead she went
to her computer and began to check the readings. Strike one. Priss made
herself relax. "Well, what's the verdict?"
Sylia smiled as the new scanners began to engage. "You tell me."
Priss focused on the data that was rushing through her mind and with a
little experimenting found that she could slow it down more than she ever
could before. "Fantastic! I can think again."
Sylia touched her cheek. "I know it's been difficult." Priss kissed the
center of her palm and pulled her into her arms. "It wasn't that bad, just
annoying. Like being in a crowd, there's lots of noise, but you can't
really understand what's being said at times." She ducked her head and
nuzzled the soft skin of Sylia's neck. A shiver raced over Sylia's skin and
she stepped closer into Priss' embrace.
Priss slipped her hand under her shirt and found the catch to Sylia's bra.
Sylia felt the material part and sighed. "I think you should test your arm
first." Priss' laugh was a low, hot wind across her skin and Sylia felt
herself begin to tremble. She could do this to her so easily. "I am testing
it. For instance the drop of perfume you put right here." Priss cupped her
breast and ran her thumb over the tip. A small sound escaped Sylia and
Priss laughed again as her hand moved down. "The traces of bath powder
here." Sylia buried her face in Priss' neck when she felt her release the
catch on her skirt. The material pooled around her feet and she gasped as
Priss breached the lace edge of her panties. "Your temperature just rose
two degrees."
Priss turned her suddenly and lifted her onto the examining table. The
panties were stripped away in one quick motion and Sylia found herself
staring at the ceiling as Priss continued her 'tests'. "Now this is REALLY
interesting." Sylia's cry of pleasure echoed through the lab.
<*><*><*><*><*>
Dr. Raven stared at the crumpled mass before him curiously. What had once
been a brand new top-of-the-line, state-of-the-art limousine was now a
twisted nightmare of metal and plastic. He turned to Mackie. "Repeat that."
Mackie pointed to the display on the overhead monitor. "It looks like the
onboard computer programmed itself to crash into a wall. There is no sign
of any outside influence."
Dr. Raven frowned deeply. "Who was the driver?"
Mackie checked. "A Mark 5 Chauffeur boomer. The driver tried to correct
but the AutoDrive overrode its commands."
Dr. Raven shook his head. "Hmm. Well, I love a puzzle." They began to run
diagnostic scans on the all of the remaining systems. Maybe they could find
out where the computer had been assembled.
<*><*><*><*><*>
It was late when Mackie finally got home. He tossed his bag onto the table
beside his bed and then let himself fall across the bed. He was asleep in
minutes.
The low hum that began to emanate from his bag went unheard. Circuits
activated and began to scan the area for an appropriate host. They had
almost run to the end of their scan time when they detected a faint trace.
Establishing a connection took time, but they were patient. Eventually a
connection was made. Then there was only the silent flow of data.
<*><*><*><*><*>
Linna signed the last form and slipped it into her out box. A quick glance
at her watch caused her to wince. Damn. Nene's going to kill me. She
gathered her briefcase and purse and headed for the door. The rest of the
offices were dark, everyone else having left long ago. <I have to start
paying more attention to the clock> Linna reached the elevator just as it
opened and she smiled at her good fortune.
The smiled died as she saw the car's occupant. The cleaning boomer was
busily scrubbing the walls of the elevator but that was not what caused her
to step back in alarm. It was the body. The crumbled form was blood soaked
and from the unnatural angle of his head, it was obvious he was dead.
Linna looked at the boomer's hands and stifled a scream. The small sound
caused the boomer to turn toward her. It peered at her with its customarily
blank expression. The voice that issued from it sounded perfectly normal
but what it said...
"You dirtied my carpet?"
Linna looked down at the carpet she was standing on.
"Naughty, naughty! Mustn't walk on my nice clean floors!" Linna looked up
in time to see the boomer reach for her with bloody fingers. She turned to
run, but the boomer grabbed her arm. Her face blanched as the boomer
tightened its grip. Linna wrenched her arm hard and managed to tear free,
but the dull pop told her that it had been at a cost.
Pain roared through her shoulder and although she didn't look, she felt
the warm flow of blood.
As Linna raced down the hallway, each step bringing more pain, she gave
silent thanks to every exercise and obstacle course Sylia had ever made the
Knight Sabers do. She slid under a desk and out the other side, narrowly
avoiding the metal broom handle the boomer was swinging at her head. With
an agile leap that would have given her dance instructor pause, she cleared
another desk and made it to the stairway door. Her shoulder was screaming
at her now and she stumbled slightly as she grasped the handle, but it
refused to budge. "Damn! Now what?"
"Naughty, naughty." Linna whirled to find the boomer right behind her. She
crouched low and the metal handle met the door with a sharp clatter as she
struck out with her left foot, catching the boomer in its mid section. It
fell back and she wasted no time seeing if it would get back up again.
The elevator door was still open and Linna frantically hit the button for
the ground floor. She couldn't see the boomer in the darkened hallway and
she wondered where it had gone. As the doors slid shut, her silent question
was answered. A metal hand shot out to catch the door and Linna screamed in
surprise. She moved back, tripped over the body and screamed again as her
shoulder slammed into the side of the car, popping the shoulder back into
place. Black spots danced in front of her eyes and she gasped for breath as
her stomach rolled. On the up side though, she could use her arm again
"Naughty, naughty." The boomer was in the elevator now.
"Shut up!" Linna shouted and in desperation tossed the boomer's mop bucket
at it. The bucket bounced off its face and splashed the floor of the
hallway behind it. The boomer froze and Linna didn't wait to see why. She
jumped up, hit the emergency exit in the ceiling with her hand, and then
caught the edge of the opening with the other, ignoring the dull throb.
Linna cleared the small hatch and looked back. The boomer was on its knees,
busily mopping up the spilled water. She exhaled deeply in disbelief and
started down the ladder that ran beside the elevator. The boomer's voice
grew fainter as she descended, but she could still hear it when she reached
the lobby.
"Naughty, naughty."
<*><*><*><*><*>
Leon McNichol was waiting for her as she stepped out of the back of the
ambulance.
The medic had cheerfully informed her that her shoulder was back in place
and would heal fine, but the gouges might require some additional surgery
to remove any scarring. Linna had stared down at the deep wounds left by
the boomer's fingers and begun to think that Priss might be right. Maybe
the only good boomer is a dead boomer. The medic had wrapped her wounds
and finally let her go. Linna saw Leon waiting for her and groaned
silently. <I just want to go home.>
He helped her down and guided her to the open door of a police car. Linna
sat down in the front seat and looked around. She realized that she had
never seen the inside of a police car before. The electronics and weapons
that had been crammed into the small space probably would have impressed
her if she hadn't been familiar with the Knight Sabers extensive equipment.
Instead, she was rather shocked at what they 'didn't' have. The distant
sound of gunfire caused her to jerk a little and Leon patted her hand
soothingly. He took out his recorder and activated it. "Can you tell me
exactly what happened, Linna?"
Linna drew a deep breath and told him. When she was finished he asked a
few more questions and then told her that he would have someone drive her
home. Another officer called his name and Leon smiled at Linna. "I'll be
right back. You just take it easy. Relax. There's police all over the place
and you couldn't be safer." He winked and went to talk to the other office.
Linna stared after him and wondered if he really believed the line he'd
just spun. The ADP were the most understaffed, underpaid and under equipped
squad of the force and most days they were lucky if they could manage to
keep their own officers from becoming boomer bait.
"Linna! Are you alright?" Linna turned to find Nene beside her. Nene
hugged her hard and then pulled back to see for herself. She saw the sling
and the bandages and gasped.
"I'm okay. But how did you know what had happened?"
Nene's smile was wry. "When you didn't show up I started to worry. So I
checked the police scanners and sure enough, there you were!" She grew
serious. "What happened?"
Linna didn't get a chance to tell her as Leon returned at that moment. He
seemed surprised to see Nene. "Hi. What are you doing here?"
"I heard about it on the scanner and came to see if Linna was okay."
A look past between the two women that turned Leon a faint shade of pink.
He cleared his throat quietly. "Oh." Damn, was everybody....? "Well then.
I guess you have a ride home." He spun on his heel and went back into the
building.
Nene tilted her head a little. "Poor Leon."
Linna laughed suddenly. "Poor Leon? What about me?"
<*><*><*><*><*>
Linna felt the pain medication kicking in and yawned. "It was so creepy,
Sylia. The boomer seemed," She tried to think of a word and gave up. "It
was not like any other boomer malfunction I've ever seen." The word came,
but it felt odd to use it in this context. "It was insane."
Sylia didn't doubt what Linna was saying, on the contrary, she knew only
too well that it could be possible. Hadn't that been part of her father's
final research? You can only have machines mimic the human condition up
unto a certain point. It was a thin line that separates sentient from
non-sentient beings. Cross that line and the debate of whether or not
boomers can have emotions becomes moot. At that point, the boomers will
begin to 'believe' that they have emotions, that they have free will. What
concerned her was that this was not a boomer that had been designed to
mimic the human condition. On the contrary, a cleaning boomer is one of the
most non-human models there are. Its shape is vaguely humanoid but only the
most basic of personality programs is installed. The human factor dilemma
had never occurred at such a low level. Mackie was right. The revolution
had begun. Sylia wished that she could get a look inside that boomer.
Nene watched Linna yawn again and stood up. "I think somebody needs some
sleep." She helped Linna to her feet, who groaned as her muscles protested.
They slowly made their way to the guest bedroom and Priss turned to watch
Sylia as the door clicked shut.
<She's worried> Priss thought absently. She studied the line of her back
as Sylia stood in front of the large window, staring out at the night sky.
<She thinks she knows what's wrong but doesn't know how to prove it or what
to do about it.> Priss sighed and got up to move behind Sylia. She wrapped
her arms around the older woman and kissed the back of her neck.
Sylia leaned into her arms. "It shouldn't have happened, Priss. There has
to be a reason." Where had they come from? Where did it all start?
Priss rested her chin on Sylia's shoulder and met her gaze in the
reflection. Priss could see the indecision warring in her lover's
expression. Sylia looked away. <She's not going to tell me. Strike two.>
She closed her eyes and fought to rein in her temper. "You'll figure it
out. You always do. You're too close right now." Priss reached for the
buttons on her shirt and Sylia made a small sound of protest. "Shhh. You
know I'm right." She drew the silk away from her body and it fell silently
to the floor. Priss began to kiss her way down Sylia's back, causing her to
rest her head against the glass. The city fell below them in a tangled
carpet of multicolored lights but they were oblivious.
Teeth raked over the small of her back and Sylia moaned softly. She turned
around and Priss found herself caught in her gaze. Sylia pushed Priss back
onto the pale carpet and tugged her T-shirt up to expose her breasts. Priss
felt the warm brush of Sylia's lips and closed her eyes in pleasure.
<*><*><*><*><*>
Linna's breath escaped in a small sigh as Nene continued to rub her lower
back, the muscles becoming looser with each slow pass of her hands and
Linna willed herself to let go of the remaining tension that gripped her.
"Mmmmm, S'nice." Nene smiled and began to work her way down Linna's legs,
taking care not to jar her lover. Linna's quiet moan was from pleasure not
pain. "God, that feels good."
Nene let her mind wander as she continued and she began to sort through
the night's events. She had come close to losing Linna. Her hands paused as
the full implications of that struck her. Nene tried to imagine what life
would be like without the tall, lithe woman beneath her and felt tears
well. No. She continued the massage. I'm not going to think about that. She
ignored the tears that escaped and tried to think of something else. But
the idea was persistent and she wondered at how quickly someone could come
to occupy such an important place in her heart.
Linna felt a wet plop against her skin and rolled over to look at Nene.
She rose up slightly and cupped Nene's cheek in concern "Hey! What's
wrong?" Nene only sighed deeply and more tears splashed onto Linna. Linna
tugged the other girl into her arms and held her tightly. "Come on, Nene.
Talk to me." Nene sniffed and wiped her eyes. "It's silly."
"No it isn't. Anything that's upsetting you this much isn't silly. Tell me."
"I just realized that you could have been killed tonight. I mean, I know
it could happen anytime we go out on a job, but this is different." Linna
nodded encouragingly and Nene continued. "You weren't armed. You were
alone." She sniffed again. "I can't get the images out of my head. I keep
trying to picture what my life would be like without you and I can't stand
what I see." Nene's expression was such a mix of despair and love that
Linna felt her heart lurch in response. Such fierce emotion. If anyone had
told her two years ago that she and Nene would become lovers then she would
have laughed in their face. But fate had other ideas and on the worst night
of their lives they had reached out to each other and the impossible had
happened.
<*><*><*><*><*>
Two years ago.....
Linna shoved her hands into her pockets and clenched them, trying to stop
the tremors. The antiseptic smell was making her slightly nauseous and she
scowled as she stared at the picture in front of her without really seeing
it. Images flashed through her mind and she spun away and returned to her
chair only to jump up a moment later and look out the door at the passing
hospital staff. When no one appeared she sighed and turned to the window.
Nene continued to cut patterns into her coffee cup with her fingernail and
the faint squeak was making Linna crazy. She stifled the urge to strangle
her and focused on the painting again. The sound of the grenade exploding
was still ringing in her ears and Linna wondered if she would ever stop
hearing it. She threw herself back into her chair and rubbed her face
wearily. Why would no one tell them anything? Maybe Priss was dead. Linna
inhaled sharply. <No. We have to be positive. Sylia said she'd make it.>
Nene's cup crumbled with a sharp squeak. "She should let us know
something! Not leave us sitting here for goodness sake!" Linna got to her
feet again and tried to ignore the sounds Nene was making as she continued
to dismantle the Styrofoam cup. Nene stood up suddenly, her expression
grim. Linna watched her clench the cup in one fist and wished she'd throw
the damn thing away.
"She's going to make it." They turned to find Sylia behind them. She
looked washed out and Linna was amazed to see her normally reserved leader
shaking slightly. As she began to describe the extent of Priss' injuries
Linna flinched. How horrible. The sound of Nene's tears snapped her to
attention and Linna went to comfort the younger girl. She got her settled
back in her chair and held her while she cried. She felt rather than saw
Sylia sit down. Linna kept herself from laughing aloud at Sylia's words.
Talk about understating the situation! "When she wakes up and finds out
what happened she'll go nuts." The lack of reaction from Sylia made her
angry. Didn't she realize what could happen? "She isn't going to accept
this easily. She'll fight it." And that was not a pretty prospect.
Sylia was suggesting that they all leave. Linna bit her tongue and held
back the angry words she wanted to hurl at their leader. <How can you be so
cold about this? Don't you feel anything?> Sylia wasn't blind. She knew
they didn't understand, but she wasn't in the mood to explain herself.
Sylia left and Linna wondered what kind of machine she was working for. A
hesitant touch interrupted her musings and she looked down into Nene's
tear-stained face. Linna brushed her fingers over Nene's cheek and pulled
her closer. It all seemed to be coming apart and she realized that she was
glad that Nene was here. The loneliness that had haunted her for so long
was pushed away by the warm clasp of the arms around her and Linna was even
more surprised at the warm feeling that curled through her when Nene asked
if she could spend the night with her.
Linna snapped on the lamp beside the couch and tossed her purse onto the
table. Nene laid her coat over the back of the couch and turned to face
Linna. "I hope I'm not imposing." This was the fourth time she'd said this
and Linna was getting tired of hearing it.
"Of course you aren't, Nene. I told you, I'm glad that you're staying
tonight. I really don't want to be alone either." Linna slipped out of her
shoes and padded into the bedroom. Nene followed, stopping in the doorway.
The couch wasn't very comfortable and Linna decided against making Nene
sleep on it. The bed was large enough for them both and she turned the
covers down and looked over at Nene. "Left or right?"
Nene stared at her blankly. "Huh?"
Linna smiled slightly. "Do you prefer the right side of the bed or the
left? It doesn't matter to me, so whatever you like is fine." Linna was
amused by the faint flush that touched her friend's cheeks.
"Uh, left I guess. If you're sure you don't mind?"
"I don't." Linna glanced at the clock beside the bed. It was almost three
a.m. "Do you want to take a bath now or wait until morning?" Nene's huge
yawn was answer enough and Linna laughed as she pulled the T-shirt she
slept in out of its drawer. She handed another to Nene. "I'll be out in a
second."
Nene was slipping into bed as Linna returned and she smiled at the drawing
on Linna's shirt. A small girl was chasing a large panda and the expression
on the animal's face plainly said that it did not want to her to catch up
with it.
Linna snapped of the light and slid into bed. She fluffed her pillow the
way she liked it and laid back with a contented sigh. Nene moved closer to
her and Linna felt her head lay on her shoulder. She pulled her close and
did something that she had no explanation for at that time; she kissed
Nene. It was just a light touch of her lips but Linna was amazed to feel
herself flushing from the contact. Nene snuggled closer and soon the
rhythmic sound of her breathing told Linna that she was asleep. It was a
long while later before Linna followed her into slumber.
The faintest of glows was edging over the horizon when Linna woke again.
She lay quietly, staring up at the ceiling and wondering what had woke her.
A small sound had her turning toward Nene. The sleeping girl was tossing
restlessly in her sleep. Linna frowned and slipped her arm around Nene's
waist, pulling her back against her. A tiny sound of distress escaped from
her and Linna spoke quietly. Nene? Nene, are you awake?" The movements
stopped and Linna could tell from the sudden stiffening of the body she
held that the other girl was now awake. "Bad dreams?"
Nene rolled over and buried her face in Linna's neck. Her reply was
muffled. "Yeah." Linna kissed the top of her head and the faint scent of
strawberries rose from Nene's hair. A shiver went through Linna and she
felt her hands begin to stroke Nene's back. Who arched into the caress.
Linna admonished herself even as her hands became bolder. <What am I doing?
This is Nene!> Nene raised her head and they stared at each other for a
moment. Then Nene bent her head and kissed the side of Linna's throat.
Linna felt her body respond and pulled the borrowed T-shirt up out of the
way as she cupped Nene's buttocks. A faint moan was the only reply and
Linna let her fingers slip downward as Nene started to suckle the underside
of her jaw. Nene stiffened with an excited gasp as Linna touched her. Linna
pushed Nene onto her back and tugged the shirt off, out of her way. Nene
watched mutely as the older girl removed her own shirt and moved over her.
<*><*><*><*><*>
The touch of Nene's fingers across her cheek shook Linna from her
thoughts. Nene smiled at her curiously. "That was a very interesting series
of expressions that just moved across your face. Care to share?"
With a contented sigh Linna settled back onto the pillows and pulled Nene
into her arms. "Just remembering the first time we made love."
Nene's grin was broad. "Oh really?"
"Ummhmm." She buried her face into the younger girl's neck and Nene felt
her skin tingle at the touch of Linna's lips.
She pulled away reluctantly. "I think you're over estimating your stamina
here." She pulled the covers up over them and carefully snuggled into
Linna's uninjured side. "But remember where you stopped and we'll pick it
up there later."
Linna laughed and kissed her forehead. "I love you, too."
<*><*><*><*><*>
The small street-sweeper unit moved quickly through the crowded sidewalk,
chittering merrily as it went about its work. People were always amused by
the boomer's antics and it was one of the more popular models. Short and
rotund, the small machine had the appearance of a strange bug with its
round eyes and multiple arms.
Today as it made its way along a preprogrammed course, it seemed to be
stopping to chat with other boomers. It would approach a fellow machine and
extend an arm as if wanting to shake hands. Then it would continue on its
path. No one realized what was really happening. Until it was too late.
A taxi suddenly swerved off the road and right towards a startled group of
pedestrians. They tried frantically to get out of its path, but it seemed
to be aiming for them. Their screams ended abruptly as they fell beneath
the wheels of the runaway vehicle. The car crashed into the side of an
office building and exploded, killing more people in the blast.
At MegaTokyo General hospital, the scene was like something out of a
disaster movie. People were packed into the Emergency Room and more were
outside trying to get in. Dr. Oasaki bent over his current patient and
tried to make some sense of what he was seeing. The young man before him
had cybernetic eyes, but they had apparently become detached. However, it
was more than that. Even as the doctor watched, the eyes seemed to wrench
themselves out of the sockets. The man screamed in agony as his eyes began
move, propelling themselves forward by the twisting synthetic nerves. There
was an answering scream in the next cubical.
A woman started screaming and the doctor threw back the curtain to see Dr.
Hitomi being strangled by the cybernetic veins that surrounded an old man's
mechanical heart. They had apparently burst through the man's chest. The
attending nurse screamed again and ran from the room. Dr. Osakai tried to
pry the fibers loose but it was too late.
All over MegaTokyo, these scenes were being repeated. Boomers were going
wild, killing people with a determined zeal. The AD Police were scrambling
to be everywhere at once and failing. People were being attacked by their
own cybernetic implants. Chaos was rapidly claiming the city and the death
toll was climbing. Outraged survivors of implant malfunctions gathered
outside Genom and tried to force their way in. The few human security
guards were no match and they wisely stood back and let the mob have its
rule. They rushed into the building only to run into the rampaging boomers
who were busy slaughtering the employees.
Priss opened her eyes and focused on the ceiling. She felt Sylia lying
next to her and grinned faintly. Images of the night before flooded her
mind and she turned to kiss her. Horror filled Priss as her mind tried to
take in what she was seeing. Thousands of metal fibers twisted out of
Sylia's flesh, reaching out towards Priss. She lurched backwards off the
bed as Sylia opened her eyes and stared at her. She held out her hand and
Priss flinched back as the tendrils extended and again tried to grab her.
She rolled away and ran naked from the room.
She headed for the elevator and went down to the garage. Priss quickly
slipped into her overalls and climbed onto her bike. As she hit the switch
for the doors, Priss felt something brush her hand and looked down to see
the handle warping out of shape, twisting towards her. She screamed and
thrust herself off and away from the motorcycle. The engine turned over and
it began to come after her. Priss scrambled to her feet and raced out into
the street only to find that the world had dissolved into a nightmare of
fire and screaming,
People were running in all directions as the cars burned and boomers tore
through the city. A woman fell to her knees in front of Priss, screaming as
she clawed at her own face. The flesh seemed to splint and the metal
strands burst free, wrapping around the woman's throat. Her screams stopped.
Priss looked down at her own arm and saw the hand rising of its own
accord. She felt the cool fingers close around her throat and knew that she
was dead.
<*><*><*><*><*>
Priss screamed and lurched upright, fighting the covers in a wild attempt
to get free. Sylia jerked awake. Priss was sobbing and frantically trying
to get loose from the tangle of covers. Sylia reached out to help her and
Priss screamed again and rolled away, landing on the floor with a dull
thud. She crawled out of the covers and backed into the corner, staring at
Sylia in horror.
Sylia froze and her stomach clenched. "Priss. Priss, it's all right. It
was just a dream." She slowly inched forward, speaking softly as she moved.
"It's okay, Priss. It's all right. It was just a dream." Her voice was
almost a whisper in the chorus of voices that echoed through her mind, but
Priss heard her and tried to reconcile what Sylia was saying with what her
mind was telling her. Priss began to shake and dropped her head into her
hands. Sylia got off the bed and knelt beside her. "Priss?" She fell back a
little and the younger woman hurled herself into Sylia's arms. Sylia held
her tightly, rocked her gently.
The door to the bedroom opened and light spilled over them. She looked up
to see Linna and Nene, their expressions concerned. Sylia's smile was
reassuring, but her eyes weren't. Sweat had plastered Priss' hair down and
she began to shiver in the cool air. Sylia grabbed the trailing end of the
blanket and wrapped it around her lover. Priss raised her head and stared
at Sylia. Sylia gasped as she saw her eyes clearly. The irises were silver.
How? That wasn't supposed to happen. "Priss can you see me?"
What a silly question. Priss laughed wildly. "I can see you. I see
everything. Peek-a-boo. I SEE you." Her voice was singsong and Sylia
shivered. Nene gasped as she caught sight of Priss' eyes. Priss turned to
her and Linna. "I see--." Her face blanched as she looked at Nene. "No." It
was a tremulous whisper, which rapidly climbed into a desperate plea. "No,
No, NO!" Priss was staring at Nene and Linna as if they were monsters. "It
can't be! Please, it can't!" She turned back to Sylia. "What have you done?!"
Sylia jerked back as if struck and shook her head. "Priss-?"
"I see EVERYTHING!" Priss clamped her fists over her eyes, but the
information kept coming.
"What do you see, Priss?"
She couldn't answer. The aftershocks of the nightmare continued to rip
through Priss and she tried to concentrate on regaining control of her body
and the implants. Data was coursing through her brain in a turbulent,
mind-bending rush and she wondered if she would ever be able to stop it
again. Pain stabbed at her as if a thousand ants were racing over her body,
devouring. Even that wasn't enough to block the truth. She pulled her hands
away from her face and looked at Sylia. Now she knew that at least part of
the nightmare was a reality. As the chaos continued to increase pure
instinct took over. The basic impulse to run from pain. Her scream a
strangled cry, Priss thrust herself to her feet and tried to run from the
room.
Sylia saw the wild expression and fearing that she might harm herself in
this state, tackled her. Priss turned on her with what could only be
described as a snarl and struck without thinking. Sylia pulled back but
still felt icy cold arcs of pain flare across her chest. Linna started
forward with the intention of helping, but Sylia's terse command stopped
her. "No! Stay back!" She grabbed Priss' artificial arm and did what should
not have been possible. She forced it down to the carpet and held it there.
Priss struggled to break free from her hold. In whatever small corner of
her mind that held what was left of her sanity, she knew that somehow Sylia
had started this and she could make it go away. "Please! Make it stop
Sylia! It hurts!" Sylia secured her grip more firmly and risked a glance at
the others. She directed her words at Nene. "There are pressure syringes in
the medical kit in the kitchen, get the green one, now!" Nene bolted from
the room.
"What's wrong with her?" Linna's question was hushed. Sylia didn't answer
and wished that Nene would hurry. She glanced at the empty doorway.
Taking advantage of Sylia's distraction, Priss rolled suddenly and broke
her hold. Sylia grabbed her ankle as she stood and Priss went flying. Nene
returned in time to see her hit the floor and lay there gasping, the wind
knocked out of her. She tossed the syringe to Sylia and moved back.
Priss caught her wrist and they were frozen there, neither unable to
overcome the other. Sweat formed on Sylia's brow as the silent struggle
continued and she knew she had to end this soon. She relaxed against Priss
suddenly and the abrupt removal of counter pressure sent her tumbling over
Sylia who grabbed the top sheet from the bed and tossed it over her. Priss
tried to pull the sheet away, but Sylia was already wrapping it tightly
around her. She found her arms pinned to her sides and screamed in rage.
Sylia quickly pressed the syringe into her side.
The tranquilizer was potent and Priss was unconscious almost immediately.
Sylia stared down at her while she waited for her breathing to return to
normal.
<*><*><*><*><*>
Sylia watched the signal in silence as it fluctuated wildly on the
scanner. "This is very strange. According to the mechanical scan, the arm
should be functioning normally. There is no apparent cause for these
readings." Yet the trauma that these anomalous signals were causing was
very real.
"It's like a computer virus." Nene mumbled to herself as she tried to
decipher the signals. She didn't see Sylia's head jerk toward her.
"A virus?" Sylia forced her voice to remain casual. If she started
screaming then Nene would probably guess that something was wrong, she
thought, wryly. "What makes you think that?"
Nene sat back from the portable terminal with a small sigh. "It's some
kind of binary encryption. It'll take awhile for the computer to crack it,
but it's like it's trying to hide itself. At first glance it seems to be
one of the maintenance programs, but if you actually analyze the file its
much larger."
Sylia drew a deep breath and considered the implications. If it were a
virus then that would explain some things. The nanobots were designed to
repel all attacks on their host or themselves. However, the cybernetic arm,
the shoulder joint, even the neural implants could be infected. The
enhanced scanners in Priss' arm could be picking up the increased activity
as they fought off the virus. Sylia connected a small keypad to the leads
that ran from Priss' arm. It would be several hours until Priss would
regain consciousness and Sylia hoped that they could solve this before she
did. "Then there is no choice but to deactivate the scanners." She began to
type commands into the pad. "Priss will still have use of the arm, but it
won't be the same."
Nene nodded in understanding. The arm would be more like a machine and she
felt a flash of sympathy for Priss. She glanced over at Linna and smiled.
The other girl had fallen asleep in the chair next to her and Nene knew
that that position couldn't be comfortable. "If that's all we can do
tonight, then I think we'll turn in. The computer will signal when it's
broken the code."
Sylia nodded. "Nene. I don't want the others to know about the virus until
we're sure that's what we're dealing with."
Nene stared at her for a long moment. Slowly she nodded, but Sylia knew
that she wasn't comfortable keeping secrets from the others. Nene shook
Linna gently. She came awake with a jerk and blinked at her fuzzily. "Huh?"
"Let's go back to bed. There's nothing else we can do until morning."
Linna nodded and stumbled after her. She plopped down onto their bed and
yawned hugely, stretching her arms high overhead. Nene frowned as she did
this. "Should you be able to do that?"
"Hmmm? Do what?"
"Stretch your shoulder out like that."
Linna slowly raised her 'injured' arm again and realized that there was no
pain. She met Nene's concerned gaze and groaned. "Oh, boy."
<*><*><*><*><*>
Sylia brought up her father's files on the nanobots. The nanobots inside
of Priss were fighting against the virus, but maybe there was someway to
tip the scales in their favor. The microscopic machines were built to
reproduce themselves when necessary and even to repair each other, but they
had no capacity for self-improvement. They were the same as the ones her
father had developed. Maybe Sylia could change that.
Hours later she was still reviewing the data when the door behind her
opened and she turned to find Mackie. "Hi." His voice was subdued and he
looked worriedly at Priss' still form. "Nene told me what happened last
night." Mackie frowned at his sister. "I can't believe you didn't wake me.
Did it occur to you that I might have been able to help?"
Sylia nodded. "Yes, it did. Which is why I wanted you to have a full
night's sleep. You may not get another for awhile." She watched the rise
and fall of Priss' breathing. "You were right. She's been infected with the
virus." Sylia made herself turn away. " I'm afraid of what would happen if
we tried to remove any of the implants, especially the neural ones. Which
means we have to fight this from the inside." She gestured to the screen
before her. "We're going to try and improve on perfection."
Mackie's eyes widened as he realized what she meant to do. "Well, I'm
willing to try it, but what if the nanobots themselves become infected?"
Sylia was silent for a long time. Finally she spoke, her voice remarkably
calm. "Then we're dead."
<*><*><*><*><*>
End Part 1
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