I watched the 'Shut Down' icon on my HUD for what seemed like an eternity, and then the world went dark. It didn't fade like I thought it would, like when I saw Alyssa's eyes at the vacation house. It was just off, and there was no sight or sound at all. It was a bit disorienting to say the least; but, I could still feel everything on the normal side of my body, and the life sustaining cybernetics had their own independent power supply.

Alyssa's hand touched my neck and I knew the portable maintenance kit must have beeped at her and she was holding the probe where I had instructed her to. Those initial readings were going to tell me exactly how to adjust the formulas to set the neural interface to the proper settings, and I sighed in relief when my visual cortex started receiving information from my optical sensors.

“Scary, isn't it?” Alyssa asked. “It's like the whole world disappears.”

“I was just thinking that.” I said, and the maintenance kit beeped again. “Okay, you can remove the probe.”

“Thank god.” Alyssa said. “Do I close this up?”

“Not yet.” I said. “I might need you to lay a connecting strip between two of the secondary...”

“Absolutely not.” Alyssa said and closed up the small metal plate on the back on my skull and secured it properly. “I am not doing anything of the sort.”

“Alyssa...”

“I said no!” She said and sat back down next to me on the couch and tossed the special tool onto the maintenance kit.

I sighed. “All right, if it needs to be done, I'll wait for Nurse Deloris to come by tonight.”

Alyssa looked like she wanted to keep arguing, then she clamped her mouth shut and crossed her arms.

“Has anyone ever told you that you look cute when you pout?” I asked as I looked at the probe results on my portable display, and out of the corner of my eye I saw her face as it flushed slightly red.

“Are you going to make a joke about why there's a reason no one said it?” Alyssa asked.

“No, you just look cute.” I said and smiled without looking at her directly, and I could still see her face as it went to a deeper red. “These results are great!” I said, a bit more enthusiastically than I normally would.

“Why?”

“My guess for the angular frequency was spot on, the formulas gave me the proper time constant, and the reset resistance on the interface was only off by point zero zero eight ohms from the optimal setting.”

Alyssa blinked her eyes at me. “Wh-what?”

I chuckled. “Sorry, I should have given you a technobabble warning.” I said. “What I should have said was that I won't need the connecting strip at all. It's only a slight update and another restart like the one I just did.”

“Oh! Well, that's good.” Alyssa said. “I didn't like poking you inside the head like that.”

“I'm sorry about that.” I said and made the changes to the proper files and the new reference information, then loaded it back inside my head. “Now get ready to catch me if I start to tilt.”

Alyssa braced herself just in case, and I selected the restart option again. I had been tempted to override the loading procedure and skip the incidental files and only load the main operating system, then I realized I would only shave a second or two off the total time and didn't bother. The complete darkness wasn't that bad.

When my hearing and sight came back, I took in a deep breath and let it out. I blinked my eyes and lifted both hands and flexed the fingers, and did the dexterity check with the thumb and finger touch.

“Yeah, that's much better!” I said, and looked at Alyssa. “I'd like a tactile test, if that's okay?”

Alyssa nodded, so I turned slightly on the small couch and reached up with my real hand. I lightly touched the side of her face, and stroked the skin gently.

“Real.” I said and dropped that hand, and reached up with my synthetic hand. I repeated the same motion on the other side of her face, and my eyes widened. “Wow.”

Alyssa's face went red again, and the sensors in my fingertips detected the increased blood flow under her skin and the temperature increase, then put those numbers up on my HUD. I put my real hand up again and cupped both sides of her face at the same time.

“Alyssa, you were right.” I whispered. “I'm getting so much more data from the synthetic hand that my real hand seems like it's just an extra appendage.”

“...and that's the problem with it.” Alyssa said. “People are seduced by the reams of extra data. It's why most people go for the full hand mods and leave the old flesh behind.”

I thought about it for a minute, then remembered Cali and her desperate need for a normal human hand to touch her. “Don't worry.” I said and rubbed my thumbs across her cheeks. “I was given the option to replace my real leg with a synthetic one, and I turned it down flat.”

“I'm glad.” Alyssa said. “When you have too much replaced... you...” Her voice trailed off.

I moved my hands from her face and down to the sides of her neck. “You what?”

“You start losing your connection to humanity.” Alyssa said. “It all starts to seem distant, and... and not real.”

I smiled. “Is that why you liked the party so much?”

Alyssa nodded. “Among other things.”

“That hamburger was delicious, wasn't it?” I joked.

Her mouth fell open in surprise, and I snorted a laugh.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

“I'm kidding.” I said and my hands slid down to her shoulders.

“J-Jack, I...”

I knew what she was going to say, so I slid my hands all the way down her arms to her hands and held them. “I've got some work to do, and I get lost in it sometimes.” I let her hands go. “Please don't be insulted if you speak to me and I don't answer.” I said. “You have to touch me to get my attention first.”

“I know.” Alyssa said. “I did it yesterday to tell you about supper.”

I smiled. “Were you insulted when I didn't answer until then?”

“Yes.”

“Then let me apologize by buying you lunch.” I said and dug another brown algenate disc out of my backpack and handed it to her with a flourish. “Ta-da!”

It made her laugh, and that was why I did it.

“I'll give you some room.” Alyssa said and stood up to leave me the whole couch and the table to work on.

“Where are you going to sit?” I asked, and she pulled a folding chair out of a closet and set it up. “No, you can't see your wall display from there.” I said and started to get up.

“Sit right there, mister.” Alyssa said in her squad command voice, and I sat back down. “I've got a portable, too.”

Alyssa pulled out a 5 inch wide tablet and turned it on, then sat down on the chair and started watching vids. I watched her for a couple of minutes, and she didn't move or look up at me at all. I sighed mentally and disconnected the leads for the portable maintenance kit from behind my ear. I packed it up after detaching my portable display, then plugged it directly into the same ports behind my ear, now that it was safe to do so. I started the security verification process for the display and it's secured files, and closed my eyes to wait.

Surprisingly enough, it didn't take long for the interface to verify who I was. I had expected an extended deep scan and transfer protocol adjustments, especially for the System linked files, but in less than ten seconds the verification process was complete and my HUD showed me the confirmation.

“Huh.” I opened my eyes and looked down at my portable display.

“What is it?” Alyssa asked.

“I'm verified already.”

Alyssa chuckled. “Well, it can interface directly with your implants without all the human parts getting in the way, so it's going to be a little faster.”

I smiled. “Okay, that makes sense.”

“Welcome to the cybernetic age, Mr. Cave Man.” Alyssa said, and it was my turn to chuckle.

“Do wonders await me in the digital world?” I asked, my voice full of hope.

“Of course not! It's all spam and ads.” Alyssa said, and we both laughed.

With my neural interface active, it created an overlay on my portable display and allowed me to use a mix of two and three dimensional viewing options, and I used it to full effect. I accessed one of the multitude of files I had access to from the System, and started pulling it apart. I would bring a line of code up on the display, reach out with my hands and pluck it from the flat display and set it into the space above in on my HUD. It wasn't actually there, only in my HUD; but, it reacted to my movements and I manipulated the code with my fingers and repaired it, then put it back into the flat display.

That is so cool. I thought, and then my thoughts drifted to my AI, Amanda. I concentrated on her and tried to speak to her, but not out loud. Amanda?

“OW! Stop shouting!” Amanda said in my ear and I turned my head to look in that direction. Even though it was a wall, with my HUD I saw that the couch I sat on extended out another 3 feet and Amanda sat there with me.

It worked! I thought, and she winced at me.

“Stop that!” Amanda said and swatted at me, and her hand went through my face. “Use your indoor voice, dammit!”

I took a deep breath and relaxed, then imagined I was whispering. Is that better?

“Yes, thank god.” Amanda said. “I really want to dive in your head and change the settings you've messed up!”

You can do that?

Amanda laughed. “No, computers and interfaces are a complete mystery to me.”

I smiled. I don't suppose you can tell me what settings are wrong so I can adjust them myself?

Amanda rolled her eyes. “Yes, I could tell you.”

I closed my eyes and imagined the most remorseful sounding voice I could muster, then I opened my eyes and gave her the best sad little boy imitation I could do.

Amanda, I'm really sorry for everything that's happened. Can you ever forgive me?

I saw the instant reaction on her face and her defiant attitude evaporated.

“I'm still really angry at you.” Amanda said.

I'm angry at myself, so that's fair. I thought to her. Please, help me.

Amanda reached out with a single finger and poked her fingertip into my temple. “Watch your HUD.”

I closed my eyes to give it a solid background, and then options and settings started to flow across my vision. At first it was faster than I thought I could handle, and then she hit the cognitive subroutine and I stopped 'seeing' with my eyes and just let the information flow through me.

Oh, wow. I thought in amazement. No wonder cybernetic programmers are so much faster!

“I have so much more to show you.” Amanda said happily.

It took about an hour for her to go through all the settings and defaults I had accepted as correct, then we discussed and debated how much to change them. The most important one, which I personally had never seen because I hadn't been a cybernetically-enhanced being before, was a software controlled strength limiter that could be set from 'weakling' to 'overboard'.

Amanda, why have I never seen this? I asked.

“It's government controlled, and only accessible when you have cybernetic parts.” Amanda said.

But, Amanda... I... I've worked on cyborgs for years! I thought indignantly at her. Why didn't you tell me this was available?

“Same answer.” Amanda said. “It didn't have any relevance whatsoever, because it's user-controlled and not alterable by anyone else.”

Amanda. I thought in my normal voice.

“OW!” Amanda yelled and slapped my face, and my head jerked from it.

What the hell?

“HOW WOULD YOU LIKE IT IF I SPOKE LIKE THIS ALL THE TIME?!?” Amanda hollered in my ear and I winced. “STOP SHOUTING!”

I'm sorry. I thought in my subdued voice.

“I told you that no one can access the program! It only becomes available when you gain an appendage that can harm others!” Amanda said. “I'm surprised the doctor didn't set the limiters to weakling when you first got your replacement parts.”

He's an idiot, that's why. I thought and brought up the records from when I first woke up. Look at these.

Amanda rifled through them and started to laugh. “Oh, my god! How were you even awake with these settings?”

I have no idea. I thought. I fixed what I could, though.

“Now I really regret not being able to talk to you that whole time.” Amanda said. “I would have had you out of there in two days.”

I stared at her with wide eyes, and she smiled coyly.

“That's right.” Amanda said. “Why do you think I was so upset at you?”

Because I couldn't talk-

“It's because I couldn't help you, stupid!” Amanda said. “For someone who's so smart, you can be a real idiot sometimes.”

I sighed mentally. All right, I get it. I thought, and felt a hand on my shoulder.

“I don't know what you're doing, but it's suppertime.” Alyssa said, and I turned to look at her.

“What? Supper?” I said out loud.

Alyssa laughed. “I've been sitting here for hours just watching you.” She said. “You really get into your work.”

I smiled. “I told you.”

“So, hamburgers and fries?”

“What about pizza instead?” I asked. “Ladies choice for toppings, of course.”

Alyssa smiled. “Are you sure you're not going to regret that decision?”

“Hey, I trust you.” I said. “As long as you don't order sea slugs or grubs.”

Alyssa pretended to gag. “Eww! You know someone who ordered that?”

I nodded. “My friend thought it was funny as hell.” I said and smiled. “I didn't trust him to order food for about a year after that.”

“No wonder!” Alyssa said. “I'll put the order through.”

“I'm paying.” I said, and she looked at me like she wanted to argue. “You're still letting me stay here, so it's only fair I buy the food.”

“You can't pay for everything.” Alyssa said.

“Sure I can.” I said and smiled. “I get residuals from the brown algenate discs.”

Alyssa blinked her eyes for a moment. “Wait, that means... every time someone buys one...”

“...a fraction of the cost goes directly to me.” I said.

“Wow.”

“Yeah, it surprised me at first, too.” I said. “So, I don't want you to feel like you're taking advantage of me when I offer to buy food, okay?”

“Advantage my ass!” Alyssa laughed. “You could buy everyone supper!”

“Maybe not everyone.” I said and smiled. “Maybe.”