“[…] Supermaterial—an invention that could stand at the podium shoulder-to-shoulder with neutronium and synthoids alike.
The story of its development was an interesting one since it was a necessary invention as the ability to generate massive amounts of new energy was not limited by itself, but by the way of containing it. That was the main purpose of this creation.
An alloy capable of containing powerful energy sources such as neutronium cores, that would be both durable, dense, neutral and flexible. And then, after many decades of development, a company called Humberside Inc. managed to create it. That allowed them to become one of the main players when it came to the synthoid market as well as become an energy mogul who is known to this day. After all, you pay your energy bills to one name only, right? I bet it starts with H. […]”
— Excerpt from a book titled ‘The Energy Evolution’ by Ula Thomson.
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“What do you know, though? Before I tell you what happened.” Rin made herself comfortable as she reclined on the squeaky plastic chair. The creaking it made was grating.
“I know why Gabriel decided to participate in the fights and that I volunteered to stand for him. Unfortunately, I was in no state to help him with that at the time, so I sent him a message that we would have to reschedule.” I watched as Rin pulled out a cigarette from inside her jacket.
Maybe the habit was popular among Contractors? I saw Rin, Jane, and a couple of others indulging in smoking since I got here. I wondered at the mental gymnastics needed to rationalize such a harmful addiction.
Medicine has improved immensely in the past couple of hundred years, but some things remained the same. That being the nature of nicotine and inhaling smoke with a surprising amount of harmful additives from what my senses reported.
“And?” Rin prompted.
“And he messaged me that it was fine. Then I came back here and Moose told me that ‘shit happened’ and Gabriel moved out.”
“Mhm.” Rin stared at me as she exhaled the smoke. It had an ambiguous fruity smell. She actually looked much calmer since she started smoking. Maybe the habit was not as useless as I thought if it made Rin of all people this complacent. “I see.”
She leaned a bit over the table and continued, “Gabby went to fight this past Sunday and Moose caught him pretty much. That piece of shit followed him and then dragged him back. Gabby couldn’t take being treated like a baby and came to me.”
I assumed the crude name meant Moose.
“Gabriel was indeed very opposed to telling Moose about all of this.”
I must’ve misjudged Gabriel a bit. I would have never thought that he’d go and fight by himself again. Maybe his determination was greater than the feeling of self-preservation? How could one become so desperate?
“Yeah, no shit. If Moose could he’d keep Gabby on a leash.” She scoffed and glanced at the stairs. Then she sighed and appeared to be glum. “Anyway. That’s the gist of what happened. Gabby could tell you more if you want. I want some peace and quiet from this shit storm of a mess right now.” I took that as my cue to leave her be. Rin was seemingly feeling the weight of the problem between those two men on her shoulders.
“Then I’ll leave you be. Tony should message me when he’s close to coming back and then I can go with you.” At that, Rin made a vague noise of acknowledgement and her eyes turned to whatever her SDI conjured.
I came back to the counter and continued to clean, but my mind churned with worry about Gabriel.
“I didn’t ask. Why does Gabriel need my help?” I assumed because of injures he might’ve sustained during a fight.
Rin remained with her back to me, but after a brief pause she answered.
“You’re a synth too, right? So I thought you’ll be able to help him. Gabby’s got some injuries still, and I can’t do jack shit about it. I don’t know how or what. Thought you might.” She shrugged her shoulders and I went back to cleaning.
“I see.”
So it wasn’t Gabriel that wanted my help but Rin herself? My core bristled with astonishment.
Also, it did sting a bit inside me that apparently Gabriel thought I told Moose about his plan. Didn’t I assure him I wasn’t going to do that?
Maybe I shouldn’t be too upset by this since Gabriel has known me for a relatively little time compared to Rin for example. Besides my willingness to train him and help him with fights, there were no other interactions between us that would make the blond man trust me. And trust was built, that I was starting to understand.
Hopefully, with Rin’s support, Gabriel would realize that I did no such thing as betray his confidence.
After some time, I received a message from Tony that he’d return in a couple of minutes. Briefly, I wondered if I should warn him of Rin’s presence but some part of me was curious as to why the two were apparently on bad terms.
Also, what if Tony were to say that he would not come back because Rin was here? That wouldn’t do.
With the sound of doors opening, I turned to see a disheveled figure of Tony walk into the hall. He told me that he had an errand to run today, which nature he obfuscated, but it appeared to leave him in a frazzled state.
“Hello, Tony.” I greeted the man and my voice echoed around the spacious hall that was illuminated by dim artificial light even during day hours. I almost couldn’t believe how these people functioned without natural light, which was important for helping humans with their mental state. But Tony did tell me that most of the Contractors preferred dark, that’s why curtains of impenetrable material covered the windows.
The hall was empty, outside of Rin and a couple of folks chatting in the corners, so Tony’s entrance was visible to all. Rin included.
The bearded man looked towards me as my voice reached him and he waved back in greeting. And then he saw Rin. His sweaty and slightly grime-covered face turned a shade paler in just a second. A worrisome reaction, certainly.
“Hi.” He managed to squeak out and rushed straight up the stairs to his right. Then I received a message as he disappeared from view.
Tell me when she leaves.
Such childish behavior. If I were still keeping files on people, he would be undoubtably tagged as immature.
My attention turned to Rin as she stood up and huffed with irritation.
“You can go now, right? Then let’s go.” She glanced at me and waited.
I wasn’t sure how long it would take me with Gabriel so the best course of action would be to get everything I would need to meet with Agatha tonight. Therefore, I grabbed the case with the rifle and made sure that the counter was spotless. I did take a while cleaning if after all.
Then, after a brief hesitation, I reached for the maintenance pack for synthoids that I left myself for emergencies. I wasn’t sure in what state Gabriel was.
“I’m ready.” I said to Rin and came closer to where she was standing. She arched one eyebrow but didn’t say anything.
After we left the building, I informed Tony that Rin was gone and I went out with her.
Rin walked closer to one of the cars lining the street. I wondered if this one was also about to be stolen, but with a distinct and sudden electronic ping that Rin sent, the car’s doors opened and she stepped into the driver's seat. I checked the digital license of the vehicle and it did not bear her name.
“Is this your car?” I asked as I sat myself in the passenger seat up front.
“My mom’s.” The car came to life and we rocketed out of the narrow street onto one bustling with traffic.
Her mother’s? The name on the license read ‘Jamila Abebe’, but even though I knew that, I couldn’t confirm Rin’s statement. I only knew Rin as Rin; nothing else.
I made sure to remember the name as I could potentially meet Rin’s mother. We were in her car, after all, and greeting the woman politely would be prudent. Because what if Rin’s mother was the same way as her? No, I couldn’t think that. One Rin was enough for me to deal with.
As Rin drove with abandon through the busy lanes lining the city in a complicated pattern, the landscape changed from dour to depressing.
The buildings around the HQ were mostly empty, but did not possess the same level of dilapidation as what I saw from the car window.
And surprisingly, there were more people living in such places than in the better-looking structures near the HQ. I saw people dressed in colorful clothing that appeared to possess many different styles. Some were more diverse when it came to the cut, others when it came to the culture they originated from.
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I saw more children lining these streets than anywhere else I’ve been to.
Children–what a peculiar phenomenon. Many of them were probably older than me, but it was I that could go and legally buy a gun. A bit outrageous, wasn’t it, that a synthoid without much experience in life among others could do things these children who grew up with socialization couldn’t.
“We’re here.” Rin said as the car stopped before a townhouse-style building that had a visible set of stairs to the basement and ones up the main entrance. Compared to other homesteads this one appeared to be well-taken care of and possessed minimal to none wear and tear. It might’ve been renovated recently.
As Rin stepped out of the car, I did as well and the closer we came to the doors the more sounds from inside were able to reach me.
I heard laughter, some sizzling reminiscent of cooking and a deep sigh that sounded very much like Gabriel, I thought.
Rin opened the door and my senses became assaulted by screaming, screeching, thudding and smells of food unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. The inside of the house was rich with various trinkets, colorful tapestry that reflected the daylight with surprising force. There was no need for lighting as the place itself shined with its bright colors.
“Mom, I’m home!” Rin exclaimed loudly as she moved towards the stairs that were right in front of us upon entrance. Before she was able to reach the first step, however, a person rushed from the room to our right.
It was a woman who looked very much like an older version of Rin with a sour grimace and sharp eyes that adorned her dark and wrinkled face. As Rin liked to dress herself in pseudo-military clothing, this woman instead wore a white flowing dress covered partially by an apron stained with colorful patterns.
“I told you to stop screaming, Highrin!” The woman slapped Rin slightly on her upper arm and turned her attention to me.
So Rin’s name was Highrin. I noted that as important information.
“Hello, Miss Jamila Abebe. I am Rend, Rin’s coworker.” I stretched my hand in greeting and tried to keep eye contact.
I was able to notice that Rin’s family was probably of Ethiopian descent, which was not surprising since hundreds of years ago a massive exodus of their people happened to come straight to America.
Such sad history, but they were warm people culturally.
“What is this?” She gestured sharply at my open palm and spat the question straight at Rin.
Oh, no. This was the worst-case scenario. A second Rin– No. Rin Prime.
“She’s here for Gabby. Not gonna stay for long.” She kissed her mother on both cheeks with a scowl and redness that told me it was caused more due to embarrassment than a bad relationship with her progenitor.
Rin’s mother, who still hasn’t greeted me, returned the gestured and then bid me farewell with a scoff and a piercing look, which made me remember the first time I saw Rin.
This was uncanny that such a similarity could occur between two people. If I could, I’d like to observe more. It would be a great subject to study in my spare time.
Rin moved up the stairs and sound of high-pitched laughter became more pronounced. I heard shuffling, jumping and something being thrown around. What was happening there? With a quick x-ray scan I saw two small skeletons jumping around a spacious room.
Children, but of course.
Upstairs, Rin opened doors that led to a spacious room with a massive and luscious bed in its center. Around the bed, two kids, who scanned as ages seven and nine, were tossing something at each other and then towards Gabriel who was lying in bed.
His face looked strange, as if one side became narrower or perhaps shallower. I suspected he suffered more indentations than the last time.
What I didn’t like about his state was not only the way he looked, but also the neutronium resonance that was coming off him in a laborious fashion. His core was struggling and that made my own jump with a sizzling current of worry.
“Get the hell out.” Rin rushed at the two rambunctious children and grabbed them both by their arms.
“What? We didn’t do nothin’!” The younger of the two, the lanky boy, struggled to get out of Rin’s grip. He was unsuccessful as she was holding his thin arm tightly, and with a powerful jerk, their sister—they had similar features—managed to squish them through the doors that I just stepped through.
They didn't even spare me a glance.
“I’ll come back for you Gab! Just you wait!” The girl, who had long and straight hair, very much the opposite of Rin’s own hairstyle, screamed with joy at the blond man.
“I’m sure you will, Aysha.” Gabriel responded with a soft smile on his face and FERS told me he felt tenderness towards her. “You too, Tom. See ya later, bud.”
At that, the boy huffed in response and I had an intriguing thought that maybe such an expression could be inherited.
I heard Rin close the doors and I came closer to where Gabriel was laying down. It would appear he did not hold the same fondness for me as I did for him at this moment.
“Rend.” Such a cold greeting. Not a very good impression on someone who was going to help him.
“Hello, Gabriel. It would appear there has been a miscommunication between us.” Not really, but I knew well that saying he overreacted with his judgment of the situation and my involvement in it was a bad move.
“How so?” With a skeptical eye, he glanced at my paralyzed arm. I thought there might have been a flicker of concern there, but he hasn’t addressed it.
“I texted you, didn’t I? She most likely did not tell Moose about your crusade.” Rin came closer and plopped herself on the opposite side of the bed to where I stood.
“That’s your opinion. How could I know it’s true?” The fists at his sides twisted into the patterned bedsheet.
“Just shelf it for now, Gabby.” Rin touched his hand that still gripped the covering but Gabriel flinched away. I saw shock and worry in Rin at that reaction. Then she said with a much softer inclination than I’ve never heard from her before, “She could help you. Please let her. For me.”
Gabriel appeared to be conflicted as he spent a good time, meaning a full minute, in contemplation. During that time, I assessed his body as much as I could with just the visuals.
Many deformations were spread around his torso, and some on his head, with different levels of seriousness. His feet were stomped as well by a massive force it would look like, but thankfully his reinforced structure did not break.
Besides some slashes, that did not appear to be too deep and would probably heal in a day or two, there was one other thing.
That being his core.
Neutronium cores in every synthoid were protected by a flexible armor of supermaterial which composition was too complicated to explain in one breath. But what was important in this situation was that it offered a strong protective layer that kept the churning energy of bouncing neutrons inside and let none of that spill. A small opening for a short period of time was fine, like it happened to me recently. But a fracture in that protective layer that was not in a designated spot was hard to fix. Nanobots could do miracles, but not that close to the core. Such condensed neutronium was too disruptive for them to function properly.
And that was Gabriel’s problem.
There was a miniscule fracture in that protective layer. Probably caused by repeated physical trauma that degraded the supermaterial that built it. That, along with all the deformations in the torso added, made his core seep out energy. And our cores needed those neutrons to keep bouncing in there against the barrier and each other to create that power which was known as neutronium.
A seepage could affect many functions as the channels that allowed for neutronium passage into our body were wired to let out a particular amount through. If that amount was too low, synthoid’s body would work to limit the function of certain areas which were to be energized. Meaning, walking could be harder, motor functions limited and many other elements of our bodies could be negatively impacted. But that was in the later stages of such injury. I didn't think Gabriel's was that far along.
I thought as to how in the world such an injury would occur in a civilian setting, as continuous force had to be applied in a rapid and consecutive manner to his abdomen for something like this to develop.
The fight he had to have must’ve been against a cruel and experienced opponent. After all, I would use the same strategy on an enemy synthoid. To just pummel one spot in their torso until something broke or fractured.
“This is bad.” I managed to say as I analyzed his injuries. I remembered when I had something like this happen to me. Recovery from this type of injury was extensive as it required a field cyberware technician to open my abdomen to gain access to that protective layer. Then the proper material would have to be applied manually to that fracture and left there for at least a full day for it to gain enough sturdiness to be stitched back up so to say. While you were open wide.
It needed air to gain its proper molecular structure.
“What do you mean bad?” Rin questioned as her voice gained a new pitch.
I looked to Gabriel and with some confusion queried him this, “Does Rin not know the full extent of your injuries? You have performed the necessary diagnostic I presume?”
To which Gabriel’s eyes dimmed with strange resignation.
“I did. You see it then? The fracture?” He kept looking at his legs as he was propped up against the headboard.
“See what?” Rin demanded.
I turned my attention to her and seeing as Gabriel appeared to be in his own world answered, “Gabriel’s deformities are mostly on the outside and can be massaged out to a proper shape. But the protective layer of his core has a fracture that needs specific materials and expertise to fully mend.”
The maintenance pack I brought with me would offer some help, but he would need an extensive list of materials to go back to full function.
“That doesn’t sound that bad. Won’t a cybertech do? They should know about stuff like that. I can call one and ask for the materials. You’ll be peachy then, right?” This time Rin grabbed Gabriel’s hand with force and even when he flinched she didn’t let go.
“I suppose a proper cyberware technician might know, but the difficulty would be with acquiring the right material and letting an unknown person basically operate on a synthoid who is both vulnerable and valuable.” It felt wrong to assign Gabriel’s body a value but that was a reality of our existence. If a person found a corpse of a synthoid on the street they would undoubtedly be able to sell it for many chips.
Trusting someone to gain access to your core sounded implausible. To myself considering what had recently happened, but probably to Gabriel as well since his expression grew even more dour.
“I don’t want anyone touching me like that.” A whisper echoed through the bedroom, followed by a deep sigh.
There was not much to say regarding that. Gabriel understood the importance of fixing that problem the same way I did.
His diagnostics must’ve been blasting at him with dire warnings.
If untreated, such constant leakage of neutronium could destabilize our core and that would be the end. The death of a synthoid.
Gabriel was racing against the clock now. The fracture happened on Sunday and based on its size there could still be time to do something since it wasn't an injury that would kill quickly. If small enough, a synthoid could function with it for a month even. It was the difficulty of treating it that was the death factor.
In this case though, I wasn't sure about the time frame.
“I can help you with the deformation if you’d like. Regarding the other issue, we can think of something I’m sure.” I didn’t like spewing falsities, but if it meant comfort for at least one human in the room so be it. Even if it was Rin.
Gabriel quickly glanced at me and nodded as he started to take off his shirt. Then he paused and said to Rin, “Could you give us some privacy, please?”
She looked surprised, but after a thorough assessment of myself, she seemed to deem me safe enough to stay with him.
After she left, I asked, “How much time?”
Gabriel’s response was both better and worse than I hoped.
“A week,” That was the good part, “but I’m not sure if I want it to be fixed.”
Now, I had to ask myself a very important question.
How does one deal with something like this? My social protocols remained quiet and I wanted to scream with agonizing frustration.