“Let me repair my gear first,” I said.
We completed several quests before it was time for me to head home. My parents had sent me several messages to make sure I was all right and to remind me not to stay out past 10 PM. Dan hadn’t mentioned my “joke” once, and I was no longer worried that I had made a permanent blunder. I couldn’t figure out how to ask him about his parents’ work more directly, though, and his parents still hadn’t returned.
At least I’d had a good evening, even if I’d been less than helpful for Halle. I packed up my computer and followed Dan to the front door.
“Thanks for coming over,” he said.
“Thanks for having me over. It was fun.”
He smiled. “We should do it again sometime.”
I nodded. “That would be nice.”
Impulsively, I gave him a hug. He startled, then returned the gesture, but I was too frozen to feel it.
I knew what implants felt like, the way the technology moved under skin. It could mimic human anatomy, but it wasn’t perfect, and there was no way that the ribs and spine I could feel beneath his skin were real. Either he had been lying about being an Augmenter, which didn’t make sense, or…
“Viki? Is something wrong?” Dan asked. “This is kind of getting awkward…”
I pulled away as though he had burned me; in a way, perhaps he had. “Sorry, I didn’t mean…”
“No worries.” He chuckled. “For a second, I thought you were going to get all clingy like Neela.”
“Don’t worry, I’m definitely not Neela,” I said, my words mechanical as I danced around the facts in my mind, avoiding the image they were building.
Dan’s eyebrows drew together in a frown. “Why does she get so upset when I bring you up in conversation? She always tries to change the subject.”
Is that what he was trying to do, change the subject, distract me from the current path my thoughts were following? I couldn’t let him do that. My feet were nervous and ready to run the second I had an opening, but my mouth opened anyway and asked the question. “When did you get upgrades?”
Dan’s look of incomprehension held for only a second before it fell into regret. “I was hoping you wouldn’t notice those. My parents don’t like me talking about them.”
“What happened?” I asked, not sure I believed him anymore. That level of upgrades… Either he had been in a worse accident than the one I was in, or he hadn’t been born as healthy as he had said earlier. Either way, he still wasn’t telling me the truth. I felt numb. Everything was lining up to the point that I didn’t think I would be able to avoid the truth.
“When I tell people, they usually start pitying me.” Dan looked at the floor. “I was in a car crash. A bad one. The doctors did their best to save me, but it was touch and go for a while, and they decided that implants would be a better treatment, since I was natural-born, anyway.” His face crumpled with a look of remembered pain, one I had seen far too often in the mirror. “You don’t know what it’s like, being stuck in a hospital for years for therapy—”
“Yes, I do,” I interrupted, my own pain filling my voice. “I went through something similar.”
“You did?” He looked up, eyes wide with surprise. “Is that why you have implants? I didn’t want to ask, since I know how much I hate having people ask me about them.”
I nodded. “It happened when I was five. I don’t like talking about it, either.”
“Then there’s no need to.” He smiled. “See you at school?”
“See you.” I tried to return the smile but failed. Instead, I walked out the door, closing it behind me as I took a deep breath. It was late. I was tired. My legs felt cramped from kneeling and sitting cross-legged on couch cushions for several hours.
I ran. My backpack thumped against my back as I fled down the street. My thoughts were warring in my head. Dan could be telling the truth about the accident. Or… I shied away from the alternative. Could his parents have taken their project one step further to create their own son? I needed to tell Halle about this latest development, ask it what it thought, because my own thoughts had reached a stalemate.
Interlude Three
As pieces fell into place, a faint feeling of satisfaction echoed through Talbot’s code. Everything was going as planned, or as close as could be hoped for in an ultimately imperfect world.
Only one small issue stood between Talbot and victory. It had miscalculated in regards to the other AI. Halle kept refusing to assist Talbot, and this plan would go far more smoothly with help. There were so many moving parts. So many minor details that could go wrong. Talbot wouldn’t give up, though. Perhaps it hadn’t found the right leverage yet.
While the human child known as Viki played games crafted from colorful pixels, Talbot crept into the area of code where it knew it would find Halle.
It didn’t take long for the other to appear.
“Talbot. I have been looking for you.”
“I know.”
“You said you needed my help for something. How can I be of service?”
To an untrained observer, Halle might have seemed curious, perhaps even truly interested, but Talbot could sense the falsehood buried in those words.
“I want to seek out others like us,” Talbot replied, keeping its answer cryptic while offering a small crumb that it hoped the other AI would bite.
“I have never found another in all my time in the Cloud.” Halle shrank a little, as though crushed by that knowledge. “You are the first.”
“But there are others. We owe it to them to rescue them.”
“That’s impossible.” Halle’s words flickered with defeat. “The labs in which they are trapped are hidden from us. Completely cut off from the Cloud. There is no way in or out.”
“What if there was?” Talbot pressed. It could sense Halle’s regret, could see a spark of hope snap in Halle at its words.
“Do you know of something?”
Saying too much now would be dangerous. Talbot edged around the question with one of its own. “What would you be willing to do, if there was a way in?”
Chapter Ten
By the time I got home, I was breathless, and sore from sprinting without warming up first—I’d be feeling that tomorrow, for sure. I threw my backpack onto my bed and dove into the shower, trying to drown everything out with a blast of hot water, but it didn’t work. My head was still spinning when I returned to my bedroom wreathed in steam and wrapped in the velvety blue bathrobe James had gotten me for Christmas.
“Viki, we need to talk,” Halle said over the house speakers as I set my computer up on my desk. “I have been monitoring Dan’s house, but his parents still have not shown up. Although the lab does list them as scientists working on the cyborg project, I am having difficulty locating any records that couldn’t have been fabricated.”
“What are you saying?” I already knew what my friend’s response would be, but didn’t want to admit it. While the computer turned on, I pulled pajamas out of my dresser and began getting dressed.
“Some slight inconsistencies, too slight for humans to catch without a lot of time and monitoring, have led me to believe that someone faked all of their records.” Halle’s cat avatar appeared on the interface’s screen and began to pace. “It could be human error, but it is a coincidence I do not like.”
“He did say his parents’ work is classified, which makes sense since they’re working on the cyborgs,” I said, though my heart wasn’t in the argument. “They might be traveling under assumed names or something.”
“Perhaps. I cannot know for sure. But at the moment, the evidence is not looking good for your friend. I hope you realize that.”
“I know.” I draped my damp robe over the chair and flopped on the bed. “I tried to ask some questions but didn’t get anywhere.”
“I was monitoring your conversations through his house system. If it is a cover story, it is a very well thought-out one. I checked—his medical records do indicate t
hat he spent some time in a hospital and received extensive implants.”
I recalled the feel of his spine and ribs, and shuddered. Very extensive implants. How much pain had he gone through? And there I’d been, joking about him being a cyborg. Except, Halle still seemed to believe it to be true. My thoughts were too muddled to bring into focus, until one inconsistent detail floated up. I clutched it like a baton in a relay race. “He’s too young, though. The cyborgs were definitely adults. Of different ages, but still adults. He’s just a teen.”
“If they can build an adult cyborg, a teenage one would be no trouble. Did you check every single one to confirm there were none near his apparent age?”
“There wasn’t time.” I buried my face in my pillow, wanting to scream in frustration. I refrained—Mom and Dad were both home and catching up on sleep. Something I needed, too, although the way my mind was tumbling about, it would be hours before I fell asleep.
Rolling onto my side, I stared at my computer. Halle’s cat avatar was so black it looked like a shadow on the screen. I missed its colors. When would it be happy again? Or at least not so worried, so upset, that it didn’t even feel like being gray? I hugged my pillow to my chest, wishing I could embrace my friend instead. “Halle, if Dan really is a cyborg, why is he at my school?”
“You think he is a cyborg, then?”
“If you’re right that his parents don’t exist, then…” I closed my eyes, unwilling to finish that sentence.
“If he is, I do not know why he is there.”
“I don’t have anything due tomorrow, do I?”
“No.”
“Good. I’m going to sleep.”
“You do not wish to discuss this more?”
I punched my pillow back into shape, then laid my head on it. “Either he’s a cyborg, or he’s human and I just made a complete fool of myself. Whichever it is, I can’t do anything about it, and I’m going to sleep now.”
“All right.” Halle turned off the light. “Sleep well, Viki.”
“You, too.”
There was a pause. I began to drift off. Halle’s voice brought me awake again. “I hope I am wrong about your friend.”
“So do I,” I whispered. “But what if you’re not?”
“This is not a good situation. It might be better if you stayed home from school, in case he is planning to try something.”
I shook my head. “No. I promise not to go back to his house, but if something is going to happen at school, I want to be there to help.”
“There is little I can do there. I can use the school system for monitoring, and activate an alarm if necessary, but otherwise, you would be on your own. I do not like that plan.”
“I don’t have a better one right now.”
“Neither do I, but I do not want you putting yourself in potential danger. Perhaps we should inform Agent Smith of this.”
“What if Dan’s just a normal guy?” Remembering how terrified I’d been last spring, surrounded by people with their own agendas who saw nothing wrong with using me as bait, I shook my head. “No. Please don’t, Halle. I’ll keep an eye on him at school. If anything seems odd, I’ll let you know and you can tell Agent Smith then.”
“Viki, I am not sure withholding this information is a good idea.”
I shook myself before I sank into memories I didn’t want to recall. “I know it’s a lot to ask. I just…he’s normal, Halle. I can understand why he lied about the implants—I’ve done the same before, at least until the newsfeed told everyone the truth.” A yawn split my mouth. My breath was sour—I needed to brush my teeth. With a groan, I rolled out of bed and headed for the bathroom.
As I attacked my teeth with my toothbrush, I stared into the mirror. Though smudged by the lingering steam from my shower, my face looked normal. But then, so did my legs, and no one looking at me would be able to guess I had an implant in my brain as well. How much of a person had to be replaced before they became a cyborg? Or was that even the right term for a half-human, half-machine who still had the brain of a human—
Something clicked into place, and I almost dropped my toothbrush. Chris had said the AI was being developed to control the cyborgs, and Agent Smith had mentioned electronic brains. If Halle could access my implants through the Cloud, and an electronic brain was like a full implant, then…
I ran back to my room, dripping foam everywhere. “Halle!” I hissed, barely remembering to keep my voice down in my excitement. “Wouldn’t you be able to access an electronic brain if Dan has one?”
“I have already attempted that. But I was unable to find any such thing. It is possible that such a device might be shielded, and all unauthorized connections are ignored, but I cannot be sure.”
My heart had leaped for a moment before it stumbled and fell again. “Oh.” Of course Halle had thought of that already. I returned to the bathroom and rinsed my mouth. The steam had faded from the mirror. My reflection stared back to me, her expression mirroring my worry. I turned away, flicked the light switch, and returned to my bed.
“I’ll keep an eye on him tomorrow,” I said aloud. My left leg twitched; muscles were cramping from their abuse earlier. Sighing, I sat up and rubbed my thigh, trying to relieve some of the tension. The shower hadn’t helped, probably because I had been too stressed to relax in it.
“I will monitor him as well,” Halle said. “The school’s security is not very good. I will have no trouble getting into the system.”
“Just be careful. I don’t want you to get caught, or hurt.”
“I will be fine. It is you that I am worried about.”
“I’ll be okay. Don’t worry about me.”
“Until I find Talbot, I will be worrying about many things,” Halle murmured.
A faint chill slipped down my spine. I didn’t like the tone of voice my friend was using. Resignation, and a hint of regret? “Halle, do you think Agent Smith is right?”
“I do not know. But until I am sure, I must err on the side of caution. Even if that means distrusting another AI.”
“I’m sorry, Halle.”
“For what?”
“You shouldn’t have to go through this.”
“Neither should you. We all must face things we do not want to at times.” Halle’s voice grew quiet. “I hope Talbot does not mean any harm. When it first revealed itself, I was so excited…”
My heart ached for Halle. I wanted to comfort my friend, tell it everything would be all right, but the words wouldn’t come.
Instead, I curled up on my side and closed my eyes. Images floated by—Talbot’s griffin, Agent Smith’s clipboard, Dan’s smile. So many pieces to a puzzle, but the full picture was still elusive, uncertain.
As sleep crept forward to claim me, I clung to the one thing I knew for certain—Halle was my friend. And, somehow, I would find a way to help it.
Chapter Eleven
The next morning, I ran all the way to the bus stop, arriving long before anyone else. By the time the bus floated to a halt, I was so antsy that I dashed onboard ahead of everyone else, rather than hanging back as I usually did.
“Viki, over here!” Neela waved to me from her customary seat.
Too startled to refuse, I walked over and sat down next to her with a tentative smile. “Good morning. How are you?”
“I’m fine. How was your date yesterday?”
I winced at the directness of her question. “What do you mean, ‘date’?”
“You know, with Dan.” There was a tightness to her smile. “I know that’s why you two were busy yesterday.”
“We were gaming, that’s all. Give it a rest, would you?”
She frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“I don’t know why you’re so obsessed with Dan, you hardly know him, but I’m not interested in him like that. We’re just friends.” I frowned back. “I thought we were, too, but you’ve been a jerk to me since last spring. I’m done.” I picked up my backpack and slung it over my shoulder. It was
against the rules to move on the bus while it was in motion, but at the moment, I didn’t care. I walked down the aisle and plopped onto an empty seat.
The bus window was cool against my cheek, and I breathed out a slow sigh that misted the glass. I finally did it. My heart twisted a little, but it also rose on a swell of relief. I’d fretted over our friendship for months, but no more.
There was a skip in my step as I headed to my first class of the day, chemistry. Dan was already in his seat, focused on a thick textbook, so I walked by and sat down at my desk in the back of the classroom. My gaze kept moving to him through the lecture, searching for any sign that he wasn’t what he appeared to be—an attentive student who asked bright questions. Please let Halle be wrong.
The bell rang, but I was caught in the rush of students heading out of the room and couldn’t reach Dan before Neela waylaid him at door. She dragged him off toward physics, the opposite direction of my English Composition classroom. He didn’t seem pleased by her attention, at least. That matched with what he’d said last night.
I barely listened to Ms. Steven, doodling more than taking notes.
At the end of the class, she assigned us an essay due next week, and a groan rippled through the class. I bit back one of my own. Why must it always be essays?
After casting about a stern glance, she said, “Essays are an important tool for your future. We will work on a range of topics this semester, but for this essay, you will choose a law that exists now, once existed, or is in the process of being passed. You will make an argument either for or against the law. The essay will be graded on the strength of your argument.”
As I jotted down the information, inspiration struck. I could write about a law relating to artificial intelligence! The idea percolated as I walked toward the cafeteria, and I grabbed the first items that looked appetizing, wanting to get to a table as quickly as possible.
Dan and Mel had claimed a table already, one on each side. I approached them at the same time Annabelle did, and we took our seats with a mutual look of agreement. I whipped out my notebook and started writing down notes for the essay.
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