She lay face down on Terrance''s operating table biting on a rubber guard to protect her teeth. The cold surface pressed against her cheek. The smell of antiseptic filling the air.
"Six hours. Give or take," Terrance said, his voice muffled by a surgical mask. "Gotta keep you awake though. Systems tests at every stage. Complicated stuff. The automated memory encoding & retrieval, and the subconscious processing core elements of the system. They all need a bit of finesse. But hey! At least I''m getting paid well right?" He chuckled, pleased with himself.
Not the usual outcome of a Christmas Day chat, Lucy thought.
Christmas had been unexpected. Lioncourt had opened the door wearing a garish holiday sweater. Snowflakes and reindeer clashing with his refined demeanour. "Joyeux No?l," he’d exclaimed, enveloping her in a warm embrace. She''d donned a sweater too. One Peril had insisted she wear. Tradition apparently.
Peril had gotten a bit too enthusiastic helping her into it. Hands had lingered a moment longer than necessary. Lioncourt tactfully excused himself to check on the turkey leaving them to settle on the sofa. Cuddling came naturally.
Her gifts were a hit. Lioncourt''s eyes widened at the cravat— blue, white and red stripes. "Mon dieu, you shouldn''t have," he said, a rare genuine awkwardness creeping into his usual charm. "And I, unprepared, have nothing for you. Quelle situation embarrassante.”
For Peril she''d bought a paper sketchpad and real pencils. Peril''s face lit up like a child''s. "These are perfect," she whispered.
A dull ache pulled her back to the present. The whirring of a tiny bonesaw echoed in her ears. So this is what having your skull opened feels like. Not sharp pain but a deep unsettling pressure.
"You''re doing great," Terrance assured, fiddling with instruments. "This tech is top-notch. Better than anything I could''ve sourced myself. Reconditioned sure, but solid. You''re brave. Diving in with second-hand gear like this. But whoever refurbished this for you did a great job." He rambled on. "Adaptive Learning Algorithmic Modules are the future, you combine those elements with the MnemoForge and CortexStream tech built-in to this bad boy - and damn! You’ll be sitting drinking a coffee reading the paper - while in the background - learning to play the piano. The NeuroSync AI in there is last year''s model. But it’s fully patched. Much better now. Last-gen working is better than cutting-edge with glitches, am I right?"
She tuned him out. He seemed content to carry both sides of the technobabble conversation he had going on. She knew what it would deliver. Skills. Skills she lacked and needed. Skills without the need for conscious effort or study. Imprinting themselves automatically on her while she slept, walked around and worked.
She''d made the decision after that sumptuous turkey dinner. Lioncourt could cook; she''d give him that.
Aurum had swung by to see Peril and drop off some presents. He seemed like a different man with her. More carefree. More open. Less suit. Soon the conversation drifted to cyberware upgrades as Lucy mentioned she was considering skill enhancements.
Suddenly they were knee-deep in specs and opinions. All three knew their stuff. It reminded Lucy of her conversations recently with her fellow rangers as class leader. Pouring over guides and “best DPS” spec vids. Ensuring every skill point and talent point was distributed to maximise their role effectiveness. Yes, it was an RP server, but they weren’t slackers.
She’d been torn between skillsofts and adaptive learning automated AI systems using learnsofts. Lioncourt dismissed both with a wave. "He''s just old-fashioned," Peril teased. "Back in his day he had to learn everything the hard way."
Aurum nodded thoughtfully. "Most operators don''t invest in themselves like this," he said. He seemed impressed at her commitment to self-improvement. Operator, she noted. Not worker. Not crew. "Skillsofts offer immediate boosts but lack depth. Muscle memory takes time and without it you''re a liability. Plus - repeated overwrites? Who knows what that does long-term."
Lioncourt chimed in, his French lilt still expressing his disdain. "Between the two evils I''d choose automated AI learning accelerators," he conceded. "You won''t wake up saying ''I know kung fu'' like a pure skillsoft system,"—He looked around, disappointed no-one caught the reference—"but you gain real skills over time. Proper retention. Genuine muscle memory. Subconsciously processing it all in the background."
He recounted the first Taiwanese rush-job of the tech back in the ''65 Border War. Civilians crammed with basic military training in a single week. "Effective. Sure," he’d said. "But the mind can only handle so much. Cognitive downtime wasn''t a concept then."
He left out the grim details but she''d looked them up later. The horrors were real. But the tech had also improved massively since those first initial models. Those failures, and more since, had let the engineers see where the breakdowns occurred.
"First set of tests coming up," Terrance announced, pulling her back. "Look Up. Up. Down. Down. Look left. Now right. Again left, now right. Close left eye. OK, close right eye. Good. Really good. Now blink." He tapped on a datapad, deeply amused with himself for some reason. "Everything''s syncing nicely. Background motor function and sensory processing AI cores spinning up. Good sync with the basal ganglia modulation module. Systems are green."
Cost had been a concern. High-end tech was pricey. Aurum suggested reconditioned gear. She hesitated. "I don''t deal with cyberware harvesters," she said firmly. Images of the organ harvester warehouse etched on her mind.
Aurum raised his hands defensively. "Nothing like that. Funeral homes often offload unclaimed tech. Families don''t always know Uncle Eddie was packing military-grade implants. It''s a grey area but cleaner than you think."
Peril offered to vet any gear. "I''ll make sure it''s safe," she promised.
A sharp twinge made her bite down. Then harder. A few muscle twitches rocked her body. The dental guard absorbed the pressure.
Two weeks after Christmas, a package arrived: reconditioned cyberware in a sterile box. High-end corporate unit from GTK. Last year''s top-spec model.
Not illegal. But usually requiring corporate clearance. Peril had even worked her magic - jailbreaking it. "Now you can upload from any brand of skill library - in multiple formats," she said, eyes gleaming.
Hell, why not, Lucy had thought with a smile, it’s not as if she was getting a GTK warranty with it.
"Almost done here," Terrance said, starting to close her up. "No scars but the hair will take a couple weeks to grow back. Might want to be pulling that hood down more - or invest in a hat! This is a heavy piece of kit you know. Literally. About a full pound in additional weight in that skull now. That’s massive extra continuous weight on your neck and shoulders. You’re going to have to strengthen those.”
Still face down staring at the worn floor, Lucy pondered her next move.
What to upload first?
She couldn’t just start with ‘advanced firearms training’ - even if she’d wanted to - you still needed the training AI learnsofts themselves. Those kinds of ones, if they even existed, were probably the domain of military specialists or corpo black ops teams. It sounded cool to download a ‘super ninja killer’ skillset and just automatically learn it over a few weeks without effort – but someone had to write that first, create it. Availability and cost would determine her first few choices. She’d start with simple, legally acquirable AI learnsofts.
Her mind raced. She’d some ideas, but needed to sit down with a tech chatbot and work through the options. Something simple to start with. Build her up. Not test the boundaries of this new automated learning system straight away – start with something nice. Maybe something for dancing with Peril?
"Hey, you still with me?" Terrance asked.
"Yeah," she mumbled, through the guard.
"Good. Because once this kicks-in - the sky''s the limit. That’s a very serious upgrade in there. Legit sure, but top shelf corpo gear for Execs with all the extras. Even really obscure shit like a NeuroForge Synapse core and a peripheral nervous system feedback AI unit. Surprised to be honest. You’re all; no, no, no Terrance - and then suddenly adding a full pound of chrome into your eight pound little skull.”
She pushed herself up slowly, movements fluid despite hours of stillness. The room spun slightly before settling. He was right. Her head literally felt heavier on her shoulders. She would be doing those neck strengthening exercises he’d mentioned.
"Take it easy," Terrance cautioned. "Your system needs time to adjust. We just plugged a lot into every bit of your cerebellum, brain stem, upper spinal cord and more. Two days. The system is complex. Going so top-end with so many active subsystems also means it all needs time to fully sync. The AI’s need time to start managing active and passive neural loads.”
She nodded, more complete technobabble. If she’d remembered any of it by the time she was home she might look some of it up. Reached for her jacket. The fabric felt different under her fingers—textures more defined. Not better. But like she was feeling it for the first time. Weird. He’d mentioned sensory input ‘somethings’. Maybe that.
"Remember. No heavy activity for 48 hours. Take it easy. Your brain is literally healing. No sims, no massive sensory input, no loud noises, no gaming. Hell. Don’t even watch a vid that requires you to think," he added. "And seriously get a cap."
No VR? Damn. But she gave a faint smile. "Thanks Terrance."
“What you gonna start with?”
She shrugged and left.
Stepping out into the neon-lit alley the city''s hum enveloped her. Every sound sharper every light more vivid. No. More weirdness. Not brighter, just… Odd. She walked, each step measured. Stopped. Yes. Her head’s weight felt strange. Off-balance. That’d take time to adjust to. She continued walking.
Her neural interface pinged—a message from Peril.
"How did it go?"
"Smooth," she typed back. "Deciding what to load first."
"Choose wisely," she replied. A winking emoji followed.
*
The sun breached the horizon casting a cascade of warm hues across the loft. From the bed on the second floor Lucy watched as the city stirred beneath the morning glow. The view was nothing short of spectacular. Peril was nestled against her back. Her presence both comforting and slightly mischievous.
"I can''t believe how much you love watching the sunrise," Peril murmured, her breath soft against Lucy''s neck. "We''ve had like, two hours of sleep."
Lucy smiled recalling Ceri''s teasing comments about her early mornings. "It''s beautiful," she said simply. "And better with company."
Peril chuckled lightly. "You didn''t mind coming over again?"
"Not at all." Lucy turned her head slightly, catching Peril''s amused gaze.
Over the past four weeks since Christmas these visits had become more frequent. It started with a 3am call the day after Boxing Day: "I''m lonely. Come over." Soon the messages evolved into "I''m horny! ?? Come over."—a blunt honesty that was quintessentially Peril. What began as sporadic late-night visits had quickly turned into a regular occurrence.
Lucy had jokingly accused Peril of using her as a cuddle toy. Even gifting her a rainbow elephant teddy bear. But the calls kept coming. Lucy cherished them. Being wanted was a new sensation. Sleeping beside someone. Wrapped in warmth—it was like a comfort she''d never known she needed.
A word surfaced in her mind unbidden: limerence. The definition flowed automatically. A side effect of the relationships learnsoft she''d uploaded. An intense often obsessive infatuation marked by heightened emotional arousal and fixation on the beloved. Damn it.
She half-regretted that particular download. But the concept resonated—the honeymoon phase where partners crave reciprocation experience. Lucy found herself locked briefly into a stream of flowing thoughts and definitions. Euphoria. Emotional highs. Idealisation. Deep emotional connection. Lucy shook her head to try and clear it all away. This unbidden stream-of-thought side-effect had happened a lot lately, but would settle down she knew. The knowledge was just so fresh in the mind after a recent upload.
Peril''s fingers traced light patterns on her back. "I still can''t believe the first thing you did was a GED learnsoft," she whispered. "Most people in our world would have slotted something combat by now."
Lucy had spent countless hours with an AI tech assistant mapping out her initial purchases and skill lines. It felt reminiscent of gaming - working with a talent calculator to plan which foundational skills would unlock more complex abilities later.
"Not finishing high school left gaps," Lucy admitted. "The GED filled in the blanks. My system recommended a three-day cooldown after the initial week—it was heftier than I expected." She’d known it was working when at the range, in her normal metronome rhythm burning through clips, the geometry of her shots had sprung into her mind. Distance and angles all forming solvable trigonometry problems in her thoughts.
Peril nodded thoughtfully. "I get that, but you could''ve picked anything. Why start there?"
"Knowledge," Lucy said watching the colours slicing through the window. "A basic solid foundation."
Peril smiled softly. "Makes sense. But still. You could have been doing Kung Fu,” She’d looked up Lioncourt’s off-hand reference and they’d watched the ancient movie together one evening. The special effects had been awfully retro, but Lucy admitted it was a decent action flick. The romantic evening just cuddling under a blanket together watching a movie had been a complete contrast to her recent busy Cleaning days.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.
Lioncourt had been dropping a lot of bodies recently, and he seemed to prefer Lucy as his favoured Clean. He was intent on some kind of post-Christmas personal reign of terror on the various gangs, criminals and mafioso of the city. Five gangers dropped one evening. A Yakuza hideout blazed through a few days later; six extra bodies. More.
Even in a city with a regular nightly sweepstake on bounty claims. Lucy was getting a little concerned she had been claiming too many. Peril had joked she’d be pushing into bounty hunter ‘ace’ territory soon. Over fifty kills claimed.
There seemed little planned rhyme or reason to it. Completely random target selection it seemed. Lucy, even after all the insight training courses had been uploaded, was unable to see a pattern other than obvious target criminality and very decent bounties. Did he literally just drive through the city and throw himself into hyper-violent situations for fun? Lioncourt never gave anything away either. Always charming to a fault. But his intent was a complete enigma.
"Coffee?" Lucy offered, breaking the comfortable introspection. Enough about Lioncourt’s callous rampage through the underworld. She needed to take care of her lovers morning caffeine needs.
"Absolutely."
Unashamed of her nakedness, Lucy slipped out of bed and descended the metal stairs with the subtle grace granted by her implants. Despite their openness she hadn''t told Peril about the relationships learnsoft. Navigating relationships was uncharted territory for her.
High school had been a minefield of rejection and isolation leaving her without the social skills others seemed to grasp naturally. More gaps she''d tried to fill. The learnsoft was another attempt to bridge the divide between knowledge and practical application. Wisdom versus intelligence stats in gaming terms.
"Colombian or Ethiopian?" she mused aloud surveying the array of coffee choices. She''d never asked Peril about her wealth. Having four types of real coffee on hand spoke volumes.
She recalled the debate with the AI assistant about wisdom versus intelligence. This learning cyber-enhancement wouldn''t boost her raw IQ in-of-itself, but, she’d figured, perhaps it could improve her ability to gain better reasoning skills and insight. The AI had insisted that insight and reasoning could be developed through training.
So she''d invested in learnsofts designed to cultivate it: accredited creative problem-solving programs. A lateral thinking course from some guy who talked about hats. Mindfulness-based cognitive training and more. A week spent uploading various learnsofts on developing insight and critical thinking approaches. Peril''s jailbreak of her neural interface had been a godsend. Granting her access to a vast library of resources.
The physical therapist learnsoft had also proven valuable. Her neck and shoulders had been under strain. Terrance had been right to warn her. She''d purchased specialised equipment for her apartment. Daily exercises now targeted the deep muscles of her neck using resistance bands and weight-based head harnesses. Her neck wouldn''t become the tree trunk of an F1 driver anytime soon, but it was strengthening. She didn''t feel top-heavy or off-balance so much anymore. She was putting in the work.
The aroma of freshly brewed coffee pulled her back to the present. She poured two cups and ascended the stairs gracefully. Each movement fluid.
Peril sat cross-legged on the bed. Unabashed in her own nudity. Her pale skin seemed almost luminous in the morning light. Though Lucy couldn''t help but notice how thin she was.
"You were lost in thought again," Peril observed as Lucy handed her a cup.
"Just thinking," Lucy replied settling beside her. They were both quite introverted people. Deeply introspective. It had become a joke between them. Their midnight whispers to each other sometimes were full of giggling “remember to use your out-loud voice” comments.
Peril took a sip. "About tonight''s dive into a new dungeon? Or your online lover?" She offered a playful smile.
Lucy chuckled. "Maybe both."
She''d shared with Peril her involvement in online gaming. Peril was fascinated by the concept of an RP guild and building stories yourself in a game with others.
"I love retro games," Peril had said. "And I prefer RTS over MMORPGs. No offense."
"None taken." Lucy knew there was more to it. They’d talked before about the underlying reason. Peril simply couldn''t immerse herself in such environments; the sensory overload was too much. Her life was about controlling stimuli and direct neural link to such a sensory intense virtual reality was overwhelming.
Lucy didn’t know how it differed to Perils hacking environment. That was also done through neural link she guessed. But Perils hacking was a part of the biz they didn’t discuss. There was a locked room in the house that she didn’t ever enquire about. Peril would tell her if she could.
Lucy had been completely honest about Lethanda. The guild. Her online relationship with Ceri—the gnome thief to her elven ranger. It had been vaguely terrifying to open up about it. But Peril was intrigued. Not jealous or possessive. Her unfiltered brutal honesty and genuineness had become their mutual relationship touchstone.
"I''ve had some... unconventional relationships before" Peril had hinted.
Lucy sensed there was depth there. Experiences she couldn''t fathom. Despite Peril''s social awkwardness she was older and seemingly more versed in matters of the heart. Lucy didn''t pry. She knew Peril''s unfiltered honesty would reveal more when she was ready.
Still it was surreal. Discussing an online relationship while cuddled with her real-world lover. She briefly wondered if the relationship learnsoft had effected her judgement to tell Peril. Or maybe it was the many critical reasoning and insight softs weighing the outcomes. Or both. That was the point of her upgrade vs a simple skillchip after all. It all melding together.
"We''ve made significant progress in the game," Lucy said steering the conversation. "The Sky-City of Jeluna was a massive quest hub. Took us weeks to clear but it opened up so many new zones and dungeons. We''re around level fifty-five now—still a way from the cap but getting closer."
Peril''s eyes lit up. "That''s impressive. I’ve played classic MMORPGs on vid screens. There was even a great space-based one—old school. No neural link."
"You seem to understand the balance between online and reality."
She nodded. "It''s important. Keeps things... grounded."
Lucy hesitated. She wasn''t sure how she''d feel if Peril had an online relationship alongside theirs. If their roles were reversed. Would she be able to be so accepting?
She winced. The relationship learnsoft was still fresh enough to spike words like ‘authenticity’ in communication, and ‘unconditional positive regard’ into her stream-of-thought. Almost worse, she knew the working definitions, and could name the academics and authors unbidden. Whatever the unbidden source, accepting and valuing each other, without conditions or judgments was a good working definition of them together right now.
"What learnsofts are next on your list?" Peril asked changing the subject smoothly. "You know I love hearing about them."
"I was considering more physical training," Lucy replied. "Maybe martial arts."
Peril grinned. "I thoroughly enjoyed the dancing learnsoft you tried. That was... memorable."
Lucy felt a warmth rise in her cheeks. She''d spent an evening in Peril’s apartment demonstrating the learning synchronization dance exercises her implant had advised she practiced. Peril watched with keen interest. Eventually insisting that Lucy would be better off if she performed them naked. The memory was a very pleasant one.
"Actually," Lucy continued "I’ve finally worked up the courage to try a military basic training learnsoft."
Peril raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
"No U.S. Marine Corps training available—they prefer traditional methods it seems. So I went with the Taiwanese Marines. Had to learn Mandarin first which was... intense." Three days. With a two day cooldown for further background cognitive processing. According to what she’d read online was apparently one of the most intense language learnsofts you could upload. She was thoroughly enjoying reading ‘The Three-Body Problem’ series in the original Chinese text though.
Peril laughed softly. "I can imagine."
"Their learnsofts are widespread online. They''ve invested heavily in this tech after some rough early implementations in the ''60s." It was either them or the Israeli softs.
"How was it?"
"Challenging but rewarding. I''ve even been practicing language at a local Chinese restaurant. Just listening and picking up conversations. The Marine basic training learnsoft I just slotted, so will take a full week to cycle, with another two days to process on top."
"Why the Marines?" It was a good question.
Lucy shrugged. "Not sure. Maybe because our Rain City is surrounded by lakes and rivers. Amphibious training might come in handy someday."
Peril reached out. Her fingers brushing against Lucy''s. "You''re full of surprises."
"Am I?"
"Absolutely."
Lucy wrapped an arm around Peril''s waist pulling her close. "Lost in thought again?" Peril teased. "Maybe I can bring you back to reality."
"Please do," Lucy whispered.
Peril leaned in pressing a gentle kiss to her lips. The sun bathed them in light the world outside momentarily forgotten.
"Coffee''s getting cold," Lucy murmured.
"Let it."
*
Just over a week later, Lucy was sipping green tea. The delicate aroma mingling with the subtle notes of jasmine in the air.
The restaurant was a step up from the diner she used to haunt—a quiet place where the clatter of dishes. Softened by the gentle strains of Chinese water music.
She could curse her luck - but this wasn''t about luck. It was about her greed.
This was a path she''d forged herself. Every decision. A deliberate step into the minefield she now navigated.
Couldn''t even pin this on Lioncourt - tempting as that was. Sure. Cleaning up his messes had accelerated things. But the chain of command began and ended with her.
She glanced down at the datapad in front of her. Diagrams sprawled across the screen—decision trees mapping out potential actions and reactions. Each branch weighed with probabilities of success. Alternative outcomes considered. Contingencies planned.
Standard operating procedure for her now - Lucy actually giggled out loud at that thought, despite her bleak circumstances. The marine basic training learnsoft was still settling in her brain. She’d had days of military style lingo popping across her thoughts randomly. It would settle down soon she knew.
The tea was good. She wondered why she’d never tried it before.
Her rise to bounty hunter ‘ace’ hadn''t gone unnoticed she mused. Detective Anderton, meek as he was, wasn''t the one sniffing around anymore.
Now it was Detective Ramirez—a seasoned veteran with a commendable track record of exposing Cleans. High threat level. Noted.
Peril had come through as always. She''d handed over Ramirez''s emails and case files from the past few days. Intel was solid. If only she weren''t the primary target.
‘Exposed’ was putting it lightly. Ramirez had connected dots Lucy hadn''t even known were on the map. Inconsistencies in her claims. Red flags the system had spiked due to Anderton’s recommendation. The pattern analysis was tight. Peril warned that under this level of scrutiny it was only a matter of time, a few days, before they pierced through the redacted sections of her file. Found the visual bug.
The game would be up at that point. She wondered if they’d bother trying to bust her at all, or just send her file to the courts for an the immediate in-absentia murder charges and let the bounty hunters find her.
Lucy cursed herself. Quietly taking another sip of tea.
Yes. She’d been greedy. Taken a year or mores worth of claims in few weeks. She should have realised that there’d be thresholds, like hitting ‘ace’ category, which would trigger more levels of scrutiny.
The mistake would now cost her everything: her home, her identity, and her freedom.
The soothing melody of the guzheng offered no comfort today. She''d ordered beef zhajiangmian—spicy noodles that had become a favourite since her language upgrade and her beginning to experiment more. Funny how she''d never realised most Chinese restaurants had dual menus: one for the tourists, one for those who could read between the lines.
She should count herself lucky she knew. Without Peril''s early warning she''d have been blindsided in seventy-two hours tops. Probably face down in an alley courtesy of some trigger-happy bounty hunter looking to make a name.
But she had time to plan. To strategise.
Her noodles arrived. Steam curling upward like signal smoke. She stirred them thoughtfully. Options were limited but not all led to terminal outcomes.
She was about to be exposed as a Clean.
Over fifty bounty claims would unravel. Each one a thread leading back to her. The moment that happened she''d be worth a lot of money dead.
‘Lucy Kellaway’ was about to die. Question was. Would she go down with that persona? Or could she ghost—disappear completely with no leads to follow?
She''d compiled a list of everyone who knew her real name and was a tangible connection. Boris topped it. Losing him would sting. No more talks about custom builds or tales from the old country. But he was a liability—a possible vector for Ramirez to exploit. She had to be ruthless.
Terrance knew her too. But he was embedded in Aurum''s circle and the shadows. Low risk there.
Peril could craft a new identity. She''d done it before. Even recommended a some minor facial adjustments to go with it—nothing drastic. Just enough to throw off automated visual scanners. A nose job maybe. Lucy had always wanted more defined cheekbones, and less frown lines.
Her funds were secure. Tucked away from prying eyes. More of Peril’s brilliance. But resources were depleting. The learning accelerator had been a significant investment. Her balance was healthy now. But the trajectory was only downward.
Another new apartment would be needed—off-the-grid probably courtesy of Aurum. She''d insist on paying Peril for the ID work. Professionalism mattered. The procedures with Terrance - erasing her old life without a trace. Ghosting in every sense.
Peril had advised a full wardrobe overhaul too. A shift in style. Operational necessity but more expenses. It all added up.
And then what? No more work as a Clean. That avenue was compromised. Transit jobs would be trickier without a legitimate identity. Fake IDs could withstand casual scrutiny but folded under sustained pressure. Peril had been clear on that. It was the entire reason Lioncourt couldn’t collect on his own bounty kills.
She wasn''t deeply attached to ‘Lucy Kellaway’ but it was the name she''d carried through the ranks. Letting go meant embracing ‘Leth’ fully—becoming the shadow. A nickname she’s decided on a sunny day at a coffee shop on a whim.
She twirled noodles around her chopsticks. The spicy aroma making her mouth water. "These are excellent," she said in Mandarin to the passing waitress. The woman smiled, pleased.
Then it struck her—a possible angle. A shift toward a more American-Chinese appearance could aid in her transformation. But no. She’d be as fake as Lioncourt, but Chinese? The thought raised a smile at least. No, his was not the example to follow. That bordered on appropriation and besides - it was too radical. Unnecessary.
Minor alterations would suffice. She hoped Peril wouldn''t mind the changes. They''d grown close and she didn''t want to disrupt that connection.
But what were her options? Aurum had been pulling her deeper into his operations. For weeks he''d hinted at wanting to assign her tasks that leveraged her burgeoning skill learning ability. He needed an expert in electronic security penetration. He had top-tier learnsofts ready, and he needed her acquired expertise.
But to what end?
Cracking high-level security while Lioncourt painted the walls red? She suppressed a shudder. A full step into the shadows. That wasn''t the future she wanted. But her avenues were narrowing.
Could she leave her morals behind as easily as her ‘Lucy’ persona? But what other choices did a wanted multiple murderer have?
Still better than ending up on the wrong side of a bounty hunter''s scope.
She finished her meal. The heat of the spices lingering pleasantly. Settled the bill. Offered a few kind words to the staff in their native tongue. Small courtesies mattered.
Stepping out into the city''s pulse she moved with purpose. Her enhanced movement synced effortlessly with the ebb and flow of foot traffic.
She had decisions to implement. Protocols to follow. The mission parameters were clear.
She grinned at those thoughts. Her mind was clearly rolling around in the military lingo like it was a pig-in-mud. Lucy was not even sure that last part made sense fully.
This was worse, if anything, than the relationship learnsoft, she decided.