Aneka Jansen 6: The Lowest Depths of Shame (4 page)

‘Oh?’

‘His mind is limited by the hardware he currently executes on. He is moving to more powerful computers and will become… more intelligent, for want of a better term. He will think faster and be more capable. He may be smarter than me. He could decide I’m beneath him…’ She trailed off, sounding uncertain.

‘Cassandra, now you
are
being silly. You’re as smart as I am, so if Al gets up to our IQ it just means he’ll be better placed to have conversations with you. He’s not going to turn into a super-genius. Winter wouldn’t do that because he’d be next to useless for Aneka. Talking is what started your relationship. If he’s better at doing it, then you’ll have a better relationship.’

‘You think so?’

‘I think so, yes.’

The android giggled. ‘I’m supposed to be comforting you.’

‘You have. You’ve taken my mind off
my
worries. You’re right, it’s stupid. There’s nothing to worry about.’

‘No, but I haven’t taken your mind off it entirely.’

‘How can you tell? I know I’m pretty transparent, but you’re not even looking at me.’

‘You have not attempted to initiate sex.’

‘Oh… Are you offering?’

Cassandra shifted away, rolled over, and then came back, crawling over Ella like a prowling tiger. ‘It will take my mind off
my
worries, and when I’ve finished with you, you’ll sleep like a baby.’

‘Oh thank Vashma,’ Ella whispered.

27.4.530 FSC.

‘How’s it going?’ Ella asked, trying to keep any hint of nervousness out of her voice.

Activity had moved down to the basement now. Winter, in both her Four and Seven bodies, was busy going over several diagnostic displays, though Ella was not sure why given that all the data had to be available to her core mind. It was the brunette Number Four who responded.

‘The transfer completed forty-nine minutes ago. Checksums indicate that the copy is complete. Number Two is upstairs putting the old body into nanostasis. I’m now going through the preliminary integration checks before initiating the support systems and activating the power cell.’

‘Al will be coming online?’ Cassandra asked.

‘Not yet. These is the very low-level support systems, very basic operating systems. Al is actually a pretty high-level component.’

‘Power cell coming up,’ Number Seven stated. ‘Output is stable… Switching over to internal power.’

There was a soft hiss from within the pod and then the mask popped away from the body’s face and was lifted up toward the ceiling. Behind it was a face which looked exactly like the one Ella was used to seeing, though she still could not see its eyes. She was rather glad of that since she did not want to see them blank and staring.

‘Telemetry is all positive,’ Number Four said. ‘Let’s run through the primary and secondary test sequences…’ She looked around at Ella and Cassandra. ‘This is going to take an hour or so.’

‘We will let you work in peace,’ Cassandra said.

‘Yeah, okay,’ Ella agreed. ‘I’ll go and… design her a swimsuit.’

‘Since when does she need one of those?’ Number Seven asked.

‘I’ve
done
everything else,’ Ella replied sullenly.

~~~

Cassandra looked up from the console she was reading and smiled. ‘Al’s awake,’ she said, ‘and they let him connect through.’

‘Aneka?’ Ella asked. She was at another console trying to work out what she could shave out of the fabric of a one-piece without destroying its structural integrity.

‘They’re keeping her offline while they go through her systems with Al’s help. He sounds… like Al, but faster.’

‘Told you.’

‘Yes… Oh!’

‘What?!’

‘He just told me what he wants to do when we’ve got Aneka’s body up to full function. Thankfully, I don’t blush.’

‘He’s glad to be alive. It’s natural.’

‘Yes, it’s just a shock to hear him say things like that. They’ll be bringing Aneka online in the next thirty minutes. We should go over there.’

Swimsuit forgotten, Ella was on her feet and running for the door before Cassandra could stand.

~~~

The front of the pod swung out and up, but the figure within remained still and Ella’s heart began to beat a little faster as she waited. Then Aneka’s eyes snapped open and she looked out at the people waiting for her to emerge, and grinned.

Stepping clear she said, ‘You know, there should really be clouds of steam for me to step out of.’

Ella grinned; that sounded like Aneka.

‘If you’d like to get back in,’ Number Seven suggested, ‘I can arrange for some dry ice…’

‘No thanks, this’ll do.’ Aneka took a few more steps, looking a little hesitant. ‘Balance seems okay. I feel… like I did before.’ Another two steps brought her within reach of Ella. She reached out, placed her hands on Ella’s hips, and lifted. ‘Have you lost weight?’ she asked.

‘I haven’t eaten much while you were under, but I doubt it,’ Ella replied, wrapping her own arms around Aneka’s neck.

‘I must be stronger then.’

‘You are,’ Winter stated. ‘Your baseline physical strength is about twenty-five per cent higher, and you now have a very significant emergency boost. War wants to talk to you about your personal weapons, by the way. Given your increase in power, she has designed some… interesting alternatives for you.’

‘
After
you’ve made sure I’m me,’ Aneka replied. ‘Do I get clothes? Or are you planning to have me walk around naked for days?’

‘Nice thought,’ Ella said, ‘but if you put me down I’ll get your new outfit.’

‘New outfit?’

‘Gillian suggested I keep myself occupied. I redesigned your entire wardrobe.’

There was the now almost obligatory Ultraskin leotard. This time it was sleeveless, high-hipped, high-collared, and with a slightly matte quality which Aneka found appealing. A bolero jacket, also with a high collar and padded shoulders, made sure her breasts were on full display, and there were fingerless gloves in a dark red which matched the front panel of the jacket. There were also, however, heavy boots and real, opaque, hip-hugging trousers.

‘How long was I out?’ Aneka asked as she pulled the two-tone red-and-black jeans up her legs.

‘Twenty-six hours, seventeen minutes,’ Winter replied. ‘Why?’

‘These clothes are almost decent. I figured I’d need to have been unconscious for years before Ella put me in real clothes.’

‘Your boobs are still there for me to admire,’ Ella replied. ‘I’m happy. So, aside from “the same,” how do you feel?’

‘Well… It’s a little weird, actually. I can tell there are differences. My diagnostics were cleaner. Sharper, you know? It’s like I got a new graphics card. My in-vision displays are all… well, they’re kind of… new. It’s all a bit different, and I’ll have to get used to everything again, but I
feel
just like I did. Except maybe a bit more nimble. Cassandra’s quiet.’

‘She is communicating with me,’ Al replied to the implied question.

‘Ah, she’s talking to Al. He sounds clearer too. Did you boost the bandwidth between our computers, Winter?’

‘Actually, yes, and his processors are significantly more powerful.’

‘Speaking of that,’ Cassandra said, looking up, ‘do you think it’s time to show them the other thing?’

‘When Aneka and Al have acclimatised to their new environment,’ Winter replied.

‘What “other thing?”’ Aneka and Ella chorused.

‘
When
Aneka and Al have acclimatised to their new environment,’ Winter repeated. Her grin was just a little mischievous when she said it, however.

~~~

War’s ideas for new weapons were a little surprising, but they were proving effective. The barrels were ten millimetres across, allowing the two machine pistols, which were lighter and a little more compact than Bridget and Clara, to fire specialist ammunition, but Aneka was getting the feel for them with the standard three-millimetre needles. Given that the barrel was just a force-focussing mechanism, the size of the round was immaterial so long as it could fit the bore.

And then there was the new targeting software. The recreation block had a firing range and Aneka was sweeping through it, locking targets and taking them down as they popped up. She had always had the option of sighting through the cameras mounted on her guns, but now it seemed as though there was a new trick in her arsenal. She had not quite figured out
how
she was managing to concentrate so well on three things at once, but she was tracking future victims with her eyes and current ones with her guns, and it all seemed absolutely seamless.

‘We’re running new combat software,’ Aneka said silently as she danced through the simulated landscape cutting down yet another pair of targets almost before they had locked in place.

‘Target tracking has been augmented,’ Al informed her. ‘I am now better able to assist in friend-or-foe identification. You’ll notice that your combat information display is more detailed, but your perception rate is sufficiently high that you should have no trouble taking in what you need.’

A target indicator went red, indicating a friendly, and she skipped it, shifting her aim to the next one without a pause. A turn flicked her vision past where the observation room was located. War was there watching her handiwork in use, with Ella, Cassandra, and Winter watching Aneka. The two pistols spoke again as more targets appeared, and Aneka’s head turned after them to locate new aim points. Ammo was getting low; they would end the scenario soon.

Three targets popped up almost simultaneously, the middle one showing a red circle. Aneka fired off two quick bursts which shredded the outside targets and then unloaded the last few rounds from both weapons into the friendly. Flashing indicators in her combat displays told her the magazines were empty. Nodding, she turned and walked toward the exit.

‘You shot a friendly,’ Ella said, frowning at her as she walked into the observation room.

‘A lot,’ Aneka agreed.

‘But…’

‘But… This is going to sound like I don’t trust Winter, but it almost didn’t feel like it was me pulling the triggers out there. I was moving, acquiring targets, and firing like I was a combat robot. Like the software was doing the thinking for me. I wanted to know I could fuck up.’

‘So you did it on purpose?’

‘Oh yes. Now I know I can I don’t need to worry about being in control.’

‘And a worrying turn of events becomes a positive indication of Aneka’s continued normality,’ Cassandra said.

Ella smiled. ‘Uh-huh. Tomorrow we’ll start the full cognitive analysis and all that stuff, but I think the transfer worked perfectly.’

Aneka put her new pistols down on one of the consoles and nodded. ‘Yeah, but you won’t be laughing when I murder all you meatbags in your sleep tonight.’

Ella gave her her harshest frown, which was not all that harsh, and poked her in the arm with a finger. ‘Don’t even joke about that.’

‘Hey, you’re the one threatening me with “cognitive analysis tests.” I
hate
exams.’

~~~

Cassandra paused in the doorway of the apartment as Aneka and Ella walked in. Her brow wrinkled, and then she said, ‘I should leave you now. You’ll want this evening to…’

‘Nuh-huh,’ Ella stated, turning to direct a firm shake of the head at the android. ‘You’re staying for several, very good reasons.’

‘But…’

‘You wanted me here when Al got back,’ Ella went on, ‘and I’m not going to kick you out now. That would be mean, and I am not mean.’

‘No, you’re…’

‘We both want to find out what Aneka’s new body can do, outside of a firing range, and the two of us will be better able to test its limits.’

‘I suppose…’

Aneka had already sat down on one of the couches to pull off her boots. ‘And I want the both of you watching me as much as possible. I don’t need to sleep now, and neither do you. After Ella flakes out you’ll be watching to make sure I don’t do anything odd. And besides, it’d be nice to have someone to talk to. I mean, Al will be there, but the three of us will be more fun, especially on my first night.’

Cassandra nodded and stepped through the door, letting it close behind her. ‘You both make compelling arguments, and I don’t actually
want
to leave.’

‘Good,’ Aneka said. ‘Now get your dress off before I start to think you didn’t miss me.’

Cassandra stepped forward, reaching for the hem of her short dress. ‘I am getting what I believe you refer to as a feeling of déjà vu.’

‘Strange that,’ Ella replied, smiling.

~~~

Aneka lay on her side, propped up on an elbow, watching as Cassandra employed her tongue on Ella. It was, essentially, a short, prehensile limb which she was very skilled in the use of, and Ella was squirming on the end of it, back arched, face contorted in pleasure.

‘Now, that would have been a neat feature for Winter to add,’ Aneka commented silently.

‘She did enhance the musculature around your vaginal analogue,’ Al replied. ‘You’re a match for the Jenlay women now. Drake may be in for a surprise next time.’

‘Yeah, but that doesn’t help with Ella.’

‘She does not seem displeased with your new flexibility and, forgive the psychoanalysis, I think that she would see that as a step too far. She knows what you are, but your form is essentially that of a normal being of her species. If your tongue was a tentacle she might find it disquieting.’

‘She seems fine with Cassandra.’

‘Cassandra is
not
Human. This is a given going in. It is normal for her to have the… features she has. Humans, and Jenlay, do not have prehensile tongues.’

‘Huh. You might have a point. So, how was it for you? Did the extra bandwidth help?’

‘I believe,’ Al said, sounding rather satisfied, ‘that I detected nuances in the sensory feeds which I have never noticed before. Right up until the point where it just became a wash of bright colours. I got the impression that your new body passed this test with flying colours?’

‘
Our
new body,’ Aneka replied, ‘is just as responsive as the old one, maybe more so. Also, I never used to be able to put my ankles behind my neck.’