When I walk myself all the way home, I find Sam standing in front of my door. As she spots me, she runs up to me and hugs me.
“How are you feeling?” She asks.
“I am doing fine, I think. It is all still sinking in, I guess. But I think I feel better, stronger even.”
“That's good. I need your newfound strength to help me move your stuff back into your room.”
“Wait, what?” I look at her in confusion.
"Well, your door was missing, so I put both your computer and jewellery in my room to keep them safe.”
I hug Sam tight again. “You’re the best.”
“I know. But so are you.”
We spent the next couple of minutes moving my stuff back. Some stuff was still missing, but my PC and my parents' engagement ring were still there, so I did not care. I put on the ring, looking at it, it has always been too big for me, so I never really wore it. Well, that and the fear I might lose it again. The last time I lost it was when the debt collectors took all our stuff. It took Cierra almost six months to somehow get it back. I know it’s the same ring since It even has the little groove I accidentally made in it as a child. It is something I will always be grateful for.
Sam is lying on my bed, clearly tired after this week. I was going to let her sleep for a bit, but then I heard her stomach rumble and decided that now is a good time to pay her back, at least a little.
“Lyssa, am I able to get 2 of the meals that Bubbles handed out on Monday?”
Most certainly. I hear Lyssa say through my PC speakers.
Two little plastic containers appear in the room, steam wafting off them. And Sam raises her head.
“Was that your AI butler?” Sam asks.
“Yeah, kind of. Want some food? I promise you this will be the best fucking food you ever had.”
Lyssa is not a butler. Lyssa is a therapist.
Sam looks at me in confusion.
“Just let her mouth off. I think she needs that once in a while,” I say.
“Well, if you say so,” She says while picking up one of the boxes. “So, what do we do next?”
“We need to wait and see what happens with Le Mond being gone and all that. Then, I don’t know, pick a new target, I guess. Kind of wish there was another incursion. I am pretty low on points.”
“You’re the first person I met who wishes for more Xenos.”
“Can you blame me? More plants mean more toys. I also want to give you a few things, but at the moment, I am not sure I can buy anything useful for you.”
You could also gift Samanta a passive dive module and load your sword master technique into it.
“What does that mean?” Sam asks.
“Well, you know how Maniac mainly uses swords, right? She learned all those sword techniques from a program running on an implant. So technically, if we put the same implant in you, we can make you just as good with a sword as Maniac.”
“Okay, that sounds fun. I am not going to lie, but I can’t exactly carry a sword around with me.”
“I mean, a dagger is technically a very small sword, right.”
“So you think I should do it then.”
“Well, I guess I wish I could give you more, but with the implant, when Maniac buys new learning programs, we can easily copy them over. So it should be a good investment, I think. Lyssa, you think so as well?”
The only issue would be that your funds would be close to zero. Most learning programs would be out of your price range for a while. You are not getting that much out of your sword techniques anymore since you know all the basics, getting a new program would be beneficial but unnecessary.
Sam and I look at each other, and just before she is about to say something, I jump in, “You see, Lyssa agrees that it is good.”
“What about getting a new program? I don’t want to throttle your progress.”
“And I don’t want to delay your starting point any more than I have to. You're my best friend, the person I trust the most in the whole world, so I would like you to at least be able to defend yourself a bit. As for a new program, Lyssa, is there a program that would teach me how to use Maniac's cybernetics and her stimulants better that is affordable? I feel like she runs into walls too often.“
Such a program can be curated for you, and you would have enough for Samantas implant.
I look back at Sam. “See, we are all good, so let’s do it.”
“Okay, sure, what do I have to do?”
If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
Samanta should sit on her knees and put her head on your lap. You have to keep her as still as possible so the procedure goes smoothly.
Sam looks at me for a while and then finally relents and does what Lyssa has told her to do.
“You both sound fucking crazy, you know that?”
“You get used to it.”
New Purchase: Class I Passive Dive Module
Points reduced to... 16
New Purchase: The Basics To Being Maniac
Points reduced to... 6
“OUW, FUCK THAT HURTS!” Sam screams.
I rub her head. “Pain, pain, go away.”
“Ass.”
“Don’t be like that. Your food is getting cold. Eat some, and you'll feel much better.”
After we finish off the food, we get back to planning. I don’t know what they put inside of this food, but I am afraid to eat too much because it does not compare to anything I have ever had before, and I don’t want to get addicted. We decided that there is no clear target at the moment unless we wanted to go after all of them at once, so we decided to sow more disarray. Spreading the news that Le Mond has fled and publishing several stories that he told us to hide. To create an even bigger headache.
I mean, sure, we will be told to take them down, so we are essentially creating more work for ourselves, but it will take them time to find a proper replacement. In the meantime, Sam and I are just going to pretend that we are still busy with all the coding work I was given on Wednesday.
As we work on this, we slowly grow more tired, and at some point, I noticed that Sam has fallen asleep. I pick her up and put her in my bed, then join her in dreamland.
I am woken up by something hitting the floor. I look up, but I don't see much since it is still dark. I decide to turn on my flashlights and see Cierra standing in my room, a deer caught in the headlights.
“Good morning,” she says.
“How did you get in here? It's a new door, and I don’t remember giving you the keys.”
She looks back at the door. “I know. I paid for it.”
“Wait, what? Why did I have to sign a contract then adding the cost to my debt?”
“THEY DID WHAT?” Cierra screams. "I am going to have a talk and have that charge removed.”
Suddenly, my bed moved, and Sam pops her head out of the blankets. “Can the both of you shut up? I am trying to sleep,”
“Who is that?” Cierra asks
“Uhm, this is Sam, my best friend.” I say, “Sam, this is Cierra.”
Sam groans and gets out of bed. “It’s nice to meet you, Cierra. Evelin told me a lot about you, but I am tired, so I will go to my room and catch up on some more sleep. Catch you later, princess.” And with that, she leaves the room.
It is funny seeing Cierra be this stumped. But she recovers quickly and sits down on the side of my bed.
“I am sorry,” she says. “I did not mean to wake you guys up. You can go back to sleep if you want.”
“It’s fine,” I say, “Just a bit tired. Work has been crazy this week.”
“I see. Is that why she was here?”
“Yeah, we just did some work while eating together,” I point at the empty boxes still on my desk. "We just kind of fell asleep while working.”
She looks at the boxes, confused. She picks one up and examines it closely. I see the gears turning.
“Evelin, this is Samurai grade.”
“Yes,” Ooh fuck, not now. Think of distractions. Ooh, right, the present.
“So, what are you doing with Samurai stuff?”
“Well, you remember yesterday when there was this entire Samurai incident? They gave me a few presents. I have one for you as well.”
“Ooh, that is alright. You can keep it. You don’t have to give anything to me. It’s yours, after all.”
“So you did not want me to get you their signatures?”
Her head snaps to me. “Wait, you actually asked for them?”
“Yeah, they're in that box,” I say, while pointing out the very colourful Samurai box.
She walks over in excitement, and slowly picks up the box, and puts it on the desk. Then, she slowly takes the lid off and she gasps, eyes wide. It stays silent for a while.
“You don’t like it?” I say, trying my best to let the smirk not creep into my voice.
“Are you kidding me? When I said autograph, I was expecting a piece of paper with their name on it, not this!” She says, a smile on her face. “I don’t recognize the model at all, but seeing that Maniac is on it, it might be a new one that is not released yet.”
“I don’t know anything about that kind of stuff. They kind of just teleported it in.”
She freezes and turns to me. “You mean this was bought with points.”
“Uhm yeah, is that a problem?”
She basically runs at me after that and jumps on top of me. “Thank you, thank you, thank you. This is the best gift anyone has ever given to me.”
“Well, I am glad you like it,” I say while hugging her back.
After that, she gets off me. “So, can I take this as good news?”
My throat dries up, and a knot forms inside my stomach. “Uhm, I think we need to talk.”
We get untangled and go to my small couch. It’s a relatively small one, but it’s a miracle I even have that much. It comes in handy now, though. Fuck I am rambling.
“So, where to start?” I say.
I hear Cierra gasp, and as I look at her, I can see tears in her eyes.
“Cierra, I like you a lot, but how we are right now, we can’t be together. I need some space, time, and freedom to find myself.”
“So that is it,” she says between sobs, “you don’t love me?”
“I never said that,” I say, not trying to cry myself. “I do love you, it’s just I can’t be with you in any kind of romantic relationship for now.”
“Why not? I don’t understand.”
“Because of your family mostly. They have used and abused me for years, and I am tired of it. I need my mind to relax and take a step back to reassess everything. I want the freedom to just be me. Not someone I am forced to be.”
“So what you’re saying, is that we are done for now, and you'll come back once you have figured it out.”
“No, not really; trust me, that is what I want to say, but not what I am saying. I don’t think it is fair to you to ask you to wait, if I don’t know if I will ever come back. You should be free. You have some issues, but overall, you're great, and you deserve to be happy. If you find that with someone else, you should go for it, instead of waiting for me.”
“I don’t know if I want that. Is there nothing I can do for us to stay together?”
“Well, you can always order me to. Your family owns me, so if you give me the order, I can’t refuse.”
It's like all the processes inside her head have stopped. She freezes for a while and then stands up, leaving the room. But before she leaves, she says one last thing.
“You know I felt horrible after I found out about your situation, and I tried my best to make you happy, and I would never force you to do anything against your will.” Then she leaves.
Well, that sucks. Now I feel bad. I decide that this is not how I want to end things and try to go after her. But before I make it even halfway across my tiny room. Anika burst into the room and grabs me.
“Who do you think you are?” she spits out at me. “You have no right to make the miss cry.”
I respond in kind and sent a few of the new hacks I made after my encounter with Silver at her, I also trickle a little bit of the strength serum into my blood. Then I pull on the arm while telling the servos to go in opposite directions from each other. With the whining of metal, I rip the arm off.
“Who am I?” I scream back at her in anger, “I am just a person trying to live, so leave me the fuck alone.”
Then I walk to the door and throw the arm out “You can leave now.”
She stands there looking at me, stunned, but eventually gets the message and walks out the door.
“Wait,” I call after her, “Cierra forgot something. Better take it with you,” and I grab the box with the figurine and give it to her. “Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.”
Once she leaves, I sit down again and break down. That could have gone better.