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roina_arwenMajor Amelia “Amy” Cooper strode quickly down the hallway of the hospital wing with a no-nonsense, don’t-interrupt-me look on her face. She was busy strategizing an attack plan for her task force and trying to decide which of her team members had the skills most likely to successfully complete the mission.
She entered the outer office and nodded politely at the fresh-faced lieutenant who manned the desk. “Hold my calls for the next hour,” she told him as she entered her private office and shut the door firmly behind her. Amy walked to one of her filing cabinets and rifled through personnel files until she had a few dozen candidates, then sat stiffly behind her wide mahogany desk. She scanned each dossier with efficiency and a good eye for detail, making notes on a leather-bound legal pad. Amy had only received her promotion to Major a few months ago and wanted to prove herself to the General.
Failure was never an option.
***
Aisling sat in front of her computer, scrolling through endless work emails, when she heard a distinct PING from one of her secondary in-boxes, a very private email account which only her immediate family knew of but rarely used. Warily, she expanded the preview pane but didn’t recognize the sender. It was from someone named Major Cooper at Talos Corporation. Quickly, Aisling searched the web for whatever public information she could find and was surprised to learn Talos was a private security company, if you wanted to call it that. A privately funded army, more likely.
She took a steadying breath, and pulled up the email. Her hazel eyes widened as she read it through. “Ember… is alive? How is that possible?” Aisling pushed back her chair, rose, and absently twirled a strand of her wavy hair as she paced. “It’s unthinkable. I can’t feel her, can’t sense her…” She stopped pacing and took a few minutes to calm herself.
Aisling focused on her breathing as she walked slowly around her desk and quietly shut her office door. She didn’t need any distractions right now. She sat at her desk and switched her console to privacy mode. Turning her mind inwards, she sought out the well-known connection that she and Ember possessed. They could almost always tell what the other was thinking or feeling. If one was upset, the other always knew. It had been that way for their entire twenty-four years on this earth. Their parents called it a twin-bond.
It wasn’t there. Aisling couldn’t find it and didn’t know why. Its loss was upsetting, to say the least.
She turned her attention back to the email, which contained a short video of Ember, dressed in a pale green hospital gown, sitting up in bed with yesterday’s news of the failed assassination attempt of Brazil’s president scrolling on the monitor in her room. Ember’s hair was frizzy – hospital staff rarely knew how to care for wavy hair – and she looked quite a bit thinner, but it was definitely her. Just having proof of life meant everything to Aisling.
She pulled out her secure cell phone and called her parent’s private number to let them know the unexpected turn of events.
***
While Major Amy Cooper waited impatiently for a response, a select handful of her team were busy on the technological front, working on the security access codes they would need to infiltrate Akamai Industries. Edward and Ana Patterson and their daughters Aisling and Ember had controlled the biotech market long enough – it was time the rest of the world got their share. The major was determined to find a way to breach their headquarters. She hoped Ember would be their way in. The twins would do anything for each other, and Amy suspected that was a good place to start. Talos needed Aisling’s talent and insider knowledge more than her parents did. What could possibly go wrong?
***
Aisling emailed Major Cooper back and agreed to the terms. Talos could choose the location, but Aisling would choose the time. It didn’t take long for the major to agree to eight-thirty pm, but any time after nightfall worked in the family’s favor.
***
Edward looked at his daughter over his wire-rimmed glasses, raised an eyebrow, and smiled crookedly. “You know, we thought you were crazy at first by agreeing to trade places with your sister, but your plan is inspired. I had completely forgotten about the beta model. She’s not quite as advanced, but in the dark no one will notice until it’s too late,” he stated. They took the elevator down to the sub-basement lab, where scientists, banks of readouts, and dozens of medical life pods from infant-sized to full grown could be found. Aisling strode down to the furthest one, glanced in at the technically alive but inactive occupant, and lovingly touched the pod that protected her.
The metal placard at the top of the unit read AISLING – Artificial Intelligence SibLING.
Aisling hadn’t known she wasn’t her parent’s biological child until after her twenty-first birthday, but she had been the first successful creation of Akamai Industries. Subsequent models had been based off her template, although each succeeding model looked identical - or nearly so, since not all families wanted identical twins - to the child of the family they had been bought by and bonded to. Ever since the government had started charging inflated prices for licenses to allow for the birth of second and rarely a third child due to limited resources, their company had prospered. An android sibling – although still expensive - was far cheaper in the long run.
She glanced at her father, and he nodded. Aisling pushed the red button to begin the start-up process. They only had a few hours before the exchange, and Aisling 2 needed to be brought up to speed.
***
Ember had been weaned off her pain medications and given a set of scrubs, a sweater, and sneakers to wear. She was excited to finally be discharged and happy to learn she would be reunited with her family later this evening. It had been far too long since her last contact with Aisling. Their twin-bond had stopped working weeks ago – Ember thought the circuit had shorted out when her heart had been shocked by the EMT’s. She would need to bring that design flaw to her parent’s attention.
***
Shortly before 8:30 pm, the Pattersons arrived at the exchange location. Aisling 2 was in the van, and had been prepped for her part in the mission. The Major and her team were already there, waiting about sixty meters away. At Major Cooper’s signal, Ember stepped out of the black sedan and was ushered closer to the front of the car. Upon seeing her parents standing by their van, she was suddenly overcome with tears of relief.
Her father opened the sliding door. Ember watched Aisling exit, but something wasn’t quite right. Aisling slowly crossed the empty lot and approached the major, her head down, looking dismayed. When she was about four meters away from Major Cooper, Aisling glanced quickly upward at Ember and cocked her left eyebrow. Go, she mouthed.
Ember looked over at Major Cooper, who nodded her assent that she could head towards the van. One of the lieutenants watched her progress. When she was about halfway there, Ember broke into a run. Aisling turned, noting how far Ember had traveled, then continued her slow approach toward the Major. When she was two meters away, she suddenly looked up and met the major’s gaze.
Major Cooper shuddered and recoiled. There was something… wrong… with Aisling. Her skin looked unfinished, with a plastic sheen, and the bridge of her nose was oddly flat. Amy held out her hand, and Aisling took it. Her skin was cool to the touch. Aisling smiled. “My condolences on your loss,” she said to the major.
“What loss?” Amy inquired in a confused manner as she ushered Aisling to the car.
Instead of answering, Aisling 2 smiled. That was when the major became aware of a very muffled, mechanical voice coming from under Aisling’s sweater. “Four… three… two… one.” Then Aisling, the car, the major, and everything within twenty meters exploded into its component parts.
In the back of the Patterson’s van, the real Aisling and Ember embraced. They had a lot to catch up on.
She entered the outer office and nodded politely at the fresh-faced lieutenant who manned the desk. “Hold my calls for the next hour,” she told him as she entered her private office and shut the door firmly behind her. Amy walked to one of her filing cabinets and rifled through personnel files until she had a few dozen candidates, then sat stiffly behind her wide mahogany desk. She scanned each dossier with efficiency and a good eye for detail, making notes on a leather-bound legal pad. Amy had only received her promotion to Major a few months ago and wanted to prove herself to the General.
Failure was never an option.
***
Aisling sat in front of her computer, scrolling through endless work emails, when she heard a distinct PING from one of her secondary in-boxes, a very private email account which only her immediate family knew of but rarely used. Warily, she expanded the preview pane but didn’t recognize the sender. It was from someone named Major Cooper at Talos Corporation. Quickly, Aisling searched the web for whatever public information she could find and was surprised to learn Talos was a private security company, if you wanted to call it that. A privately funded army, more likely.
She took a steadying breath, and pulled up the email. Her hazel eyes widened as she read it through. “Ember… is alive? How is that possible?” Aisling pushed back her chair, rose, and absently twirled a strand of her wavy hair as she paced. “It’s unthinkable. I can’t feel her, can’t sense her…” She stopped pacing and took a few minutes to calm herself.
Aisling focused on her breathing as she walked slowly around her desk and quietly shut her office door. She didn’t need any distractions right now. She sat at her desk and switched her console to privacy mode. Turning her mind inwards, she sought out the well-known connection that she and Ember possessed. They could almost always tell what the other was thinking or feeling. If one was upset, the other always knew. It had been that way for their entire twenty-four years on this earth. Their parents called it a twin-bond.
It wasn’t there. Aisling couldn’t find it and didn’t know why. Its loss was upsetting, to say the least.
She turned her attention back to the email, which contained a short video of Ember, dressed in a pale green hospital gown, sitting up in bed with yesterday’s news of the failed assassination attempt of Brazil’s president scrolling on the monitor in her room. Ember’s hair was frizzy – hospital staff rarely knew how to care for wavy hair – and she looked quite a bit thinner, but it was definitely her. Just having proof of life meant everything to Aisling.
She pulled out her secure cell phone and called her parent’s private number to let them know the unexpected turn of events.
***
While Major Amy Cooper waited impatiently for a response, a select handful of her team were busy on the technological front, working on the security access codes they would need to infiltrate Akamai Industries. Edward and Ana Patterson and their daughters Aisling and Ember had controlled the biotech market long enough – it was time the rest of the world got their share. The major was determined to find a way to breach their headquarters. She hoped Ember would be their way in. The twins would do anything for each other, and Amy suspected that was a good place to start. Talos needed Aisling’s talent and insider knowledge more than her parents did. What could possibly go wrong?
***
Aisling emailed Major Cooper back and agreed to the terms. Talos could choose the location, but Aisling would choose the time. It didn’t take long for the major to agree to eight-thirty pm, but any time after nightfall worked in the family’s favor.
***
Edward looked at his daughter over his wire-rimmed glasses, raised an eyebrow, and smiled crookedly. “You know, we thought you were crazy at first by agreeing to trade places with your sister, but your plan is inspired. I had completely forgotten about the beta model. She’s not quite as advanced, but in the dark no one will notice until it’s too late,” he stated. They took the elevator down to the sub-basement lab, where scientists, banks of readouts, and dozens of medical life pods from infant-sized to full grown could be found. Aisling strode down to the furthest one, glanced in at the technically alive but inactive occupant, and lovingly touched the pod that protected her.
The metal placard at the top of the unit read AISLING – Artificial Intelligence SibLING.
Aisling hadn’t known she wasn’t her parent’s biological child until after her twenty-first birthday, but she had been the first successful creation of Akamai Industries. Subsequent models had been based off her template, although each succeeding model looked identical - or nearly so, since not all families wanted identical twins - to the child of the family they had been bought by and bonded to. Ever since the government had started charging inflated prices for licenses to allow for the birth of second and rarely a third child due to limited resources, their company had prospered. An android sibling – although still expensive - was far cheaper in the long run.
She glanced at her father, and he nodded. Aisling pushed the red button to begin the start-up process. They only had a few hours before the exchange, and Aisling 2 needed to be brought up to speed.
***
Ember had been weaned off her pain medications and given a set of scrubs, a sweater, and sneakers to wear. She was excited to finally be discharged and happy to learn she would be reunited with her family later this evening. It had been far too long since her last contact with Aisling. Their twin-bond had stopped working weeks ago – Ember thought the circuit had shorted out when her heart had been shocked by the EMT’s. She would need to bring that design flaw to her parent’s attention.
***
Shortly before 8:30 pm, the Pattersons arrived at the exchange location. Aisling 2 was in the van, and had been prepped for her part in the mission. The Major and her team were already there, waiting about sixty meters away. At Major Cooper’s signal, Ember stepped out of the black sedan and was ushered closer to the front of the car. Upon seeing her parents standing by their van, she was suddenly overcome with tears of relief.
Her father opened the sliding door. Ember watched Aisling exit, but something wasn’t quite right. Aisling slowly crossed the empty lot and approached the major, her head down, looking dismayed. When she was about four meters away from Major Cooper, Aisling glanced quickly upward at Ember and cocked her left eyebrow. Go, she mouthed.
Ember looked over at Major Cooper, who nodded her assent that she could head towards the van. One of the lieutenants watched her progress. When she was about halfway there, Ember broke into a run. Aisling turned, noting how far Ember had traveled, then continued her slow approach toward the Major. When she was two meters away, she suddenly looked up and met the major’s gaze.
Major Cooper shuddered and recoiled. There was something… wrong… with Aisling. Her skin looked unfinished, with a plastic sheen, and the bridge of her nose was oddly flat. Amy held out her hand, and Aisling took it. Her skin was cool to the touch. Aisling smiled. “My condolences on your loss,” she said to the major.
“What loss?” Amy inquired in a confused manner as she ushered Aisling to the car.
Instead of answering, Aisling 2 smiled. That was when the major became aware of a very muffled, mechanical voice coming from under Aisling’s sweater. “Four… three… two… one.” Then Aisling, the car, the major, and everything within twenty meters exploded into its component parts.
In the back of the Patterson’s van, the real Aisling and Ember embraced. They had a lot to catch up on.
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Date: 2024-08-01 06:52 pm (UTC)Dan
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Date: 2024-08-02 05:16 am (UTC)The metal placard at the top of the unit read AISLING – Artificial Intelligence SibLING.
Really loved this bit.
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Date: 2024-08-03 12:57 am (UTC)Ember thought the circuit had shorted out when her heart had been shocked by the EMT’s. She would need to bring that design flaw to her parent’s attention.
Yikes.
The family successfully negotiated this round of contact with Talos, but I'd be willing to bet that won't be there last encounter.
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Date: 2024-08-03 01:41 am (UTC)Top drawer, all the way! ❤❤❤
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Date: 2024-08-03 04:15 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-08-03 04:56 pm (UTC)- Erulisse (one L)
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Date: 2024-08-04 04:44 pm (UTC)