The Replacement - Part 4

Part 4.1: New jobs

Despite John’s warning, Sabrina’s newly upgraded body ran smoothly and without any major issues and a few weeks after Sabrina’s upgrade, Ipek received one as well. Sabrina graduated with her Master’s degree a few weeks after she moved into her upgraded body, and she quickly got a new job working as a secretary at the local college, earning more than enough money to quit her job at the retail store.

Greg’s promotion finally came through as well. He was promoted to Assistant Special Agent in Charge, or ASAC, of logistics and operations. Basically, he was in charge of all the other analysts, amongst other things.

They both had a small celebration at their apartment, though John was hospitalized for reasons he refused to disclose, though he said it was some sort of work related injury, so they didn’t read too much into it. Still, Greg’s parents managed to make it.

As happy for Greg as Sabrina was, she was still a little nervous, because even though he was the ASAC of basically the office support staff and the analysts, he was now expected to occasionally go out into the field, meaning he had to carry a firearm with him; he was actually a good shot, though he hadn’t had to use a weapon since the academy.

Greg assured her he would be alright, since he would rarely have to go out into the field, and when he did he would be with trained agents, but she worried nevertheless.

They both happened to start work on the same day, so they got into separate vehicles and headed to their new jobs.

While Sabrina was getting settled into her new work atmosphere and getting to know her coworkers, Greg was settling in to his new office and joining his first briefing meeting with the SAC and the other ASACs.

After his lunch break, he finally had some alone time in his office, so he decided to pull his tablet out and check in on Sabrina. He quickly pulled up the visual feed and saw her vision of what he assumed was her desk. She was currently filing some sort of paperwork.

It did not take her too long to realize he was looking at her feed, and her voice emitted from his tablet’s speaker.

“Hey, why are you spying on me?” she asked a demanding tone of voice, though she didn’t censor anything from her visual feed, so he knew she was just being playful.

“Just checking in on you,” he said.

“Aww, that’s sweet,” she said.

“How’s your first day of work?” he asked.

“It’s going fine,” she said, “Though this one intern keeps hitting on me even though I told him I’m spoken for,” she complained.

“I’m sure you can handle him,” he said, “I don’t have anything to worry about, do I?” he asked.

“No,” she laughed, “He’s not even close to as good as you,”

“Good,” he said.

“So, how’s your day been going?” she asked.

“I’m just getting my brand new office settled in,” he gloated, leaning back in his chair and looking around at his nice sized office.

“Hey, that’s not fair,” she said.

“Don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll have an office someday too,” he said.

“I hope so,” she said.

They chatted for a few more minutes before getting back to their work. They decided to try and chat in that fashion every day that week, and they were able to…though it was much easier for Sabrina since she could carry on the conversation inside her head while continuing her work and without alerting anyone.

Their conversations went fairly well, until their last chat at the end of the week. Greg was finishing up some paperwork in his office before heading out for the weekend, and Sabrina was doing the same thing.

“I wonder what Ipek is cooking for us tonight,” Sabrina mused as she typed a pile of transcripts into the computer.

“Hopefully something filling,” Greg said, “I’m starving,”

“Me too,” she agreed, “I’m so glad I can chat with you right now,” she said, “Everyone else has left and I’m all by myself here,”

“Well, I’m glad I can keep you company,” he said.

“Don’t you feel lonely in that…,” she said.

“Sabrina, what is it?” he asked.

“I thought I heard something,” she said, and a few moments later, “Must have been something outside,” she added, “Don’t you feel lonely in that office?”

“No,” he said, “I have a one way window, so I can see what they are doing and they can’t see me,”

“Cool,” she said, “Someday you have to let me see your…”she started, and then the visual feed cut out.

“Sabrina, are you there?” he asked, suddenly getting worried.

After getting no response, he quickly left the visual feed and went to the diagnostic window. He gasped when he saw the result. Her systems had suffered a severe electrical overload, causing her to shut down. The only way that could have happened is if she were attacked.

“Shit!,” Greg muttered, pulling out his phone and quickly dialing the emergency number for John.

“Greg, what is it?” John’s voice sounded over the phone.

“I think someone attacked Sabrina,” Greg explained, hooking an earpiece to his ear and getting his gun, “Her diagnostic reads show she suffered a severe shock, and her systems are all shut down,”

“Damn it!” John swore, “She’s only been working there a week, who would want to hurt her?”

“I’m not sure,” Greg said, “She mentioned that there was an intern making advances on her,”

“Is her homing beacon still active?” John asked.

“Yes,” Greg said, double checking the tablet.

“Good, you head over to where she is while I alert our private security teams,” John said.

“Okay,” Greg said, “I’m going to quickly reacquisition a chopper so I can get there more quickly,” Greg said, already filing the request on his office computer, “Fortunately the college she works at has a helipad,”

“You just go,” John said, “I have a team nearby that will probably arrive shortly after you do,”

“Understood,” Greg said, and once his request was approved, he quickly rushed out of the office and up to where his chopper was awaiting.

From the San Francisco field office, the flight took less than ten minutes. The second they landed on the roof, he leapt from the chopper and followed the homing beacon to Sabrina’s location. Just before he left the roof, he absently noticed a bunch of unmarked vehicles peel into the nearby parking structure.

The homing beacon went beyond the offices were Sabrina worked, into the computer sciences section of the building. He slowed down and controlled his breathing as he entered the lab the signal was coming from. His heart sank when he saw the label on the door, “Cybernetics lab,”

“Damn it, someone knows what she is,” he swore under his breath.

Greg quietly opened the door and looked around. He heard a muttering sound coming from the other end of the room in a separate chamber. As Greg got closer, he could begin to make out what the voice was saying.

“Damn girl, whoever built you was a genius,” he said, “I couldn’t even tell you were a robot,” he added, “But those wireless signals gave you away,” he continued.

Greg’s blood was beginning to boil as he heard this guy musing about his girlfriend. His heart nearly burst from his chest when he finally came within eyesight of them. He saw Sabrina completely naked on an examination table. Because he didn’t have access to her tablet, he had used a scalpel to cut into Sabrina’s front access panel, causing her artificial blood to spill out.

It was a testament to his training and his usual cool headedness that he didn’t pop the guy in the head right then, instead he continued his slow advance and listened to the idiot’s verbal musings.

“Man, I just can’t figure you out,” he said, “Where’s your A.I. center at?” he asked, beginning to attach devices to her primary motor center.

That was enough for Greg. “It’s in her head,” he announced loudly, pulling his gun and aiming it at the man.

“Whoa!,” the man announced, though when Greg finally saw his face, he was able to see it was actually a 16 year old freshman.

“FBI,” Greg announced, flashing his badge, “drop the tools, put your hands in the air and step the hell away from my girlfriend,” Greg told him.

“FBI,” the boy said in a confused voice, “Your girlfriend?” he asked.

“That’s right,” Greg said, “That person you attacked is my girlfriend,”

“You actually think that is a person,” the boy laughed, “Now that’s sad,”

“Just shut the hell up kid,” Greg said through gritted teeth.

“I can’t believe an FBI agent actually thinks a robot could be his girlfriend,” the boy continued nevertheless, “As real as she seems, she’s still a machine,”

“You have no idea what you are dealing with kid, I suggest you be quiet,” Greg told him.

“Actually, I’m something of a prodigy with cybernetics,” the kid announced arrogantly, “I know everything there is to know about them and even the most real ones are still just machines,”

“Sabrina here used to be a real person,” Greg said, “She’s an experimental humanoid replacement model,”

“What the fuck?” the boy said, “There’s no way androids like that can exist. I don’t believe you,”

“Believe it or not, they do,” Greg said, and he heard the sound of footsteps outside, “Looks like my backup is here,” Greg said, just as the team of men came in, all wearing black suits.

“Agent Phillips,” the leader of them called out.

“Over here!” Greg called back to them, and as soon as they arrived, he said, “This kid somehow discovered what Sabrina is,” he reported, “Why don’t you take him in and question him?”

“Gladly sir,” the leader said, and he and his team roughly seized the kid and began pulling him out as a second team entered with a stretcher for Sabrina.

“Hey!, you can’t do this! You’re FBI, you have no jurisdiction here!” he yelled.

“True, but they aren’t FBI,” Greg smiled, and then the men dragged him out.

“So, did he do any irreparable damage to her?” Greg asked the technician who was looking over Sabrina’s body.

“Well, the skin is easy to repair,” the technician reported, “But we won’t be able to assess the damage caused by the shock until we get her to the lab,”

“Alright, I’m riding with you,” Greg said, and he followed Sabrina’s stretcher down to their vans, holding her hand as they made the long drive to John’s lab.

John was waiting for them when they finally arrived at Sabrina’s personal lab. Once they hooked her up to all the machines and ran a few diagnostics, they all gave a collective sigh of relief.

“What is it?” Greg asked, “Is she okay?”

“Yes Greg, she’s okay,” John said, “That idiot used a stun stick at the base of her neck,” he explained, “Fortunately, we developed a countermeasure which basically cutoff her power systems before any serious damage could be done,” he continued, “The funny thing is we originally designed that safety feature for the rare possibility an android might get struck by a bolt of lightning,” he finished with a laugh.

“Well, that kid was an idiot,” Greg said, laughing as well as he watched them replace a few minor components in her body and then resealing the sliced skin with a special tool, “So, what are your guys going to be doing to that kid?”

“Well, we’re going to interrogate him to find out how he discovered Sabrina’s nature,” John said, “Then we’re going to use our government connections to have his cybernetics licenses and certifications revoked permanently, and we are going to invoke a gag order on him,”

“A little excessive,” Greg said, “But after what he did to Sabrina, I really don’t care,”

“Me neither,” John said, and then one of the technicians reported that Sabrina was repaired, “Good, could you activate her please?”

The technician reached behind Sabrina’s left ear and pressed in. Moments later, all her systems came back online and she woke up with a start.

“Whoa!” she screamed, shocking almost everyone in the room.

“Relax Sabrina, you’re safe,” John said, walking over to calm her down.

“What the hell happened?” she asked, “The last thing I can remember was filing some paperwork and chatting with Greg,”

“Well, apparently that annoying intern found out you were an android and attacked you with a stun stick,” John explained, “Greg flew over to the school and rescued you,” he exaggerated slightly with a sideways wink.

“That creep attacked me?” she asked, shuddering at the thought, “What did you do to him?” she asked.

“We’re questioning him now to find out how he discovered what you are,” John reported, “Suffice to say he won’t ever be able to bother you again,”

“Good,” she said.

“How are you feeling?” Greg asked, walking up to her.

“I’m fine now that I know I’m safe,” she smiled, “My hero,” she added.

“Oh, it wasn’t quite like that,” he scoffed modestly, blushing nevertheless.

“Well, that’s how I choose to remember it,” she said stubbornly, and then she got up and kissed him.

After the technicians cleared her to leave, they gave her some clothes to wear and she and Greg were driven home by one of John’s employees. That night they had some pretty awesome trauma sex before eating what Ipek was able to reheat for them and then passing out in their bed.

After a few days passed, they had forgotten the incident and had moved on with their lives. Greg was just finishing up a case involving him going out into the field with the white collar crimes unit. As he was heading back into the field office, he heard someone yell out, “Hey, robot lover!”

Greg turned around and was surprised to see the kid he had busted the previous week for attacking Sabrina. He was even more surprised to see the kid aiming a gun at him.

“You,” was all Greg said.

“Yes, me,” the kid sneered, “Thanks to you, my life is ruined,” he said, “Thanks to you and your robot,” he added.

“Kid, I know you think she’s just a robot, but she is a lot more than that,” Greg said, watching as several of his coworkers formed a perimeter around them.

“Thanks to you two, I can’t get a job anywhere!,” the kid screamed, “All I wanted to do was figure out how she worked, but you all just overreacted!,” he continued, seeming completely unhinged now.

“Kid, just relax,” Greg said, trying to calm the kid down.

“NO!,” the kid screamed, “You ended my life, and now I’m going to end yours!” he screamed, and he fired his weapon directly at Greg.

Greg felt a searing pain in his back. As he fell to the ground, he could hear his coworkers emptying their magazines into the kid. The last thing Greg remembered before losing consciousness was the sound of his own labored breathing, and the blood pooling around himself.

Part 4.2: Emergency procedure

Greg came in and out of consciousness. There were teams of doctors working on him for what seemed like a lifetime. When the doctors finally had him stabilized, they informed him that bullet fragmented and fractured several of his vertebrae, paralyzing him from below the arms.

After a few counselor’s came in to assess his mental state following the news, he was allowed to have visitors. Sabrina came in all the time, of course, as well as his parents. After a few days, after everyone else left, he was visited by John.

“Hey Greg, sorry I couldn’t make it these past few days,” John apologized as he entered Greg’s room.

“Don’t worry about it,” Greg shrugged, “I know how busy you are,”

“Yeah, as soon as I was able, I arranged to have some time off from my schedule so I could work on something,” John said.

“What are you working on now?” Greg asked.

“You, I hope,” John answered.

“What do you mean?” Greg asked.

“Well, from what I hear, you will never be able to walk again,” John said delicately, “And the use of your arms might be questionable as well,” he added, “so that might make it a little difficult for you to continue working,” he finished.

“All this is true,” Greg sighed, “But what exactly are you getting at?”

“Well, with your approval, I could get started on building you a brand new, robotic body not too different from Sabrina’s that you could spend the rest of your life in,” John replied.

“What?” Greg asked, a little shocked by the proposition, “As much as I may have dreamt about having an android body over the years, especially after getting R. Sabrina, I’m just not sure,” he finished.

“Why?” John asked.

“Well, I may be used to Sabrina, but how human would I still be?” Greg asked, “Would I just be emulated by some A.I. like Sabrina?”

“No,” John said, “I told you we had just about perfected our soul transference device a few months ago, and now we have,”

“But how can you be sure it actually works?” Greg asked, “With Sabrina the concept was simple. You copied her memories and personality over and had a computer emulate her, but what about with me?”

“Trust me Greg, I know,” John said, almost speaking with experience, “I would love to explain the science to you further, but I am forbidden unless you agree to the procedure,”

Greg sighed again. “I know Sabrina had Okayed an android duplicate of herself months before her accident,” Greg said, “But she didn’t actually have to face it. I do,”

“I can see where you are coming from,” John said, “But you also have to think of Sabrina,” he said, “She did agree to the procedure, even though we ended up having to do what we did instead, because she loved you and knew you would die without her in your life,” John continued, “I can assure you, aside from the robotic body, you will be human in the only way that truly matters: your mind,” he finished.

“Can you let me sleep on it?” Greg asked, thinking about John’s words.

“Of course,” John smiled, knowing he had struck a chord in Greg’s heart, “I’ll be back as soon as visiting hours open tomorrow,” and John patted Greg’s chest and left the room.

Greg thought long and hard about John’s proposal until the nurse added a sedative to his mix of meds, causing him to fall asleep. His dreams that night focused on Sabrina, and how much he valued her in his life. She made him a better person, and he in turn added something to her life.

When John arrived at the beginning of visiting hours the next morning, he had his answer.

“Well son, have you decided?” John asked as he entered.

“Yes,” Greg said, “Let’s go for it,”

“Excellent,” John smiled.

After he agreed to the procedure, John used his mysterious connections to have Greg transferred to his lab. Once they were at the lab, Greg found himself in his own special lab not too far away from Sabrina’s, and several technicians ran tests on him.

Sabrina took time off work during Greg’s transformation and rehabilitation, and was there for him every step of the way.

One of the first things they did to him was take skin and DNA samples from numerous locations on his body. They also did some sort of brain scan. Finally, they ran his naked body through an extensive 3D scanning process. Once the tests were done, he had nothing to do but wait.

“So Greg, how are you feeling so far?” John asked, once all the preliminary tests were done.

“Well, I’m just wondering what all these tests are for,” Greg said, looking at all the people busy at work analyzing his results.

“These good people are attempting to build a perfect replica of your body,” John explained, “They took 3D scans for the printer, and skin samples so the printer can recreate your skin more accurately,” John continued, “They are also getting your android body’s skeletal structure and hardware ready,” he finished.

“Cool,” Greg said, “About how long will it take for my new body to be finished?”

“Probably a couple days,” John answered, “It will always take a while during the initial construction, but when you get a body upgrade in five to ten years, it should take considerably less time,” John assured him.

“Good,” Greg said, “So maybe now you could explain a few things to me,”

“What do you want to know?” John asked.

“Sabrina was sort of able to explain, but how exactly does her brain work?” Greg asked.

“Well, I’ll have to show you her brain first,” John said, turning to Sabrina, “Would you mind?” he asked.

“No dad,” she said, making the seam around her scalp appear.

“Don’t worry, this shouldn’t take long,” John assured her, and quickly pulled her brain out, replacing her panel and bringing the brain over to where Greg could easily see it.

“I’ve already seen her brain,” Greg said, “I’ve also noticed it is sort of shaped like an actual brain,” he added.

“And that is exactly how it works,” John said cryptically.

“What?” Greg asked.

“Well, we de-centralized the brain by having the motor cortex and other involuntary bodily functions handled by the primary motor center in the torso,” John explained, “That leaves us with this,” John said, setting Sabrina’s brain on Greg’s lap.

“Again, I know this already,” Greg said.

“Yes, but did you know that each lobe on her brain is exactly identical to the lobe of the original Sabrina’s brain?” John asked.

“No,” Greg said, “But I never cut open the original Sabrina’s head,” he added.

“Neither have I,” John laughed, “But I can assure you, each of the lobes that handles her personality, emotions, higher reasoning, you name it, is exactly duplicated in this device,” he said.

“Really?” Greg asked, looking more closely at his girlfriend’s brain.

“Yes, that gelatinous matter in there actually has tiny little cells which could be compared to brain cells,” John continued, “That’s how she is able to store her memories and react and respond exactly as the original Sabrina did,”

“But then what is the difference between what you are planning on doing with me and what you had to do with her?” Greg asked, “It seems if you were able to copy her memories and everything else over, it should still be her,”

“During the course of our research, we’ve determined that the soul is essentially energy,” John said, “That energy is the driving force, the will, that pieces everything in our brains together to make you ‘you’,” he explained.

“So, that’s why Sabrina needs an A.I. to emulate her?” Greg asked, “Because it fills in for the soul?”

“Yes,” John said, “But now we’ve perfected a device which can not only copy and transfer a person’s collective memories and experiences into an android brain,” he said, gesturing at Sabrina’s brain on Greg’s lap, “We’ve also developed the means by which to transfer a person’s soul energy into the android brain as well,”

“So then my android brain wouldn’t have an A.I. emulating me?” Greg asked.

“No,” John said, “It would have an A.I., but that A.I. would only be there to translate the sensory information of the body, as well as the body’s telemetry, into something that you can understand,” he explained, “Since the motor functions are de-centralized throughout the body,” he finished.

“Okay,” Greg nodded, “And the A.I. wouldn’t have any control over me?”

“Not directly,” John said, “If, by some chance, there was an error processing your soul, the A.I. could take over and get you to a repair station,” he explained, “Also, the A.I. can take over your body if your body is malfunctioning,”

“Okay, as long as it can’t take over my mind or something,” Greg laughed.

“No, the A.I. in your body is going to be somewhat less sophisticated than the one Sabrina uses,” John assured him, “It won’t be able to perform any actions independent of its programming,”

“Good,” Greg said.

“So, what say we get Sabrina back in her body and then go over any changes you want made to your new body?” John asked, picking Sabrina’s brain back up and reinserting it into her head.

Once Sabrina was back online, she smiled and asked, “So, what did I miss?”

“Not much dear,” John said, “Greg is now educated on how your brain works,”

“Good,” she said.

“So, what did you mean by changes I want made to my new body?” Greg asked.

“Well, not anything major, but we can make a few aesthetic modifications for you,” John explained, “Straighter teeth, more or less body hair, neater nails, remove scars or imperfections, you name it. We can do it,”

“Do you think you could give me a tablet with a readout of my body?” Greg asked.

“Sure,” John smiled, as he already had one waiting.

Greg spent the next hour reviewing the 3D body image they had taken of him. He made a few notations on various parts of his body, mostly scars and areas he wished were a little less hairy.

“Alright,” Greg said, finally choosing the last thing he wanted changed, “What next?”

“Now you get to choose which options you want,” John said, changing the screen to a list of options, “In addition to the ones we already gave Sabrina, you can also get a few to modify your vision to give you an edge in combat situations,” he pointed out.

“Cool,” Greg said, looking over the list.

He noticed many of the options were little things, like sensory modifications. He chuckled when he saw an option for extra voices. While he was clicking on a few, he was voicing them out loud and asking questions.

“So, how come Sabrina hasn’t gotten to add any of these options?” Greg asked.

“Because I didn’t need them,” she replied, “They showed them to me the night before I got my body upgrade a few months ago,”

“Oh,” Greg said, and he continued perusing the options.

He finally decided on a few visual enhancements: infrared and better gun aiming. He also selected a universal translation option, which would allow him to read and understand other languages, though not speak them. Finally, he added a few options that would allow him more control over his body’s involuntary responses, such as the growth of his facial and head hair, as well as his nails.

“Alright Greg, this is good information for our technicians to use,” John said, taking the tablet from him, “They should have your new body ready for your inspection in about 48 hours,”

“Okay,” Greg, “When am I going to be transferred into an android brain?”

“Once you approve of the way your body looks,” John replied, “Then the transfer process will be done overnight, and we hope to activate you in your new body by noon the next day,” he smiled.

“Alright,” Greg said, “So am I going to be staying here until the body is ready, or will I be going home with Sabrina?”

“You’ll need to stay here,” John said, “But Sabrina has agreed to stay here with you,”

“Alright,” Greg said.

Greg spent the next couple days being briefed on what to expect in his new body. Fortunately, the person who was briefing him was one of the first people to transfer, so they were very helpful. Sabrina was with him as well, helping explain some things the man couldn’t.

“One of the first things you need to know is the A.I. and primary motor complex handles all the involuntary responses, so you’re still going to blink randomly to moisturize your eyes, and you will still breathe,” the man explained, “Also, even though you don’t actually have to breathe, I recommend it because that’s how you will speak naturally and that’s the best way to cool off your body,” he continued.

“Okay,” Greg nodded, taking it all in, “What about…waste?” he asked uncomfortably.

“Again, that will happen just as naturally as with your current body,” the man continued.

“Alright,” Greg said, “Am I still going to feel pain or discomfort?”

“Yes,” the man said, “Your skin is sensitive to pain so you don’t touch fire or something, and your muscles can get weak,” he explained, “But you won’t experience stomach discomfort or any other injuries that would be attributed to any organs that your android body simply doesn’t have,”

“Well, that doesn’t sound too bad,” Greg said.

“It isn’t,” the man smiled, “The only thing I have to warn you is that it may take a day or so for you to fully acclimate to your new body, but your A.I. should be able to help you,” he said, “Aside from that, you’re going to feel great!”

“Thanks for all your help,” Greg said, shaking the man’s hand and watching as John entered the room.

“Was he helpful?” John asked.

“Yes, very much so,” Greg smiled as the man left.

“Good, I’m sure he told you it would take about a day or so to acclimate, but Sabrina should be able to cut that time considerably,” John said.

“That’s good,” Greg said.

“Anyway, your body is finished and is on its way here,” John said, and a few moments later, a pair of technicians came in with Greg’s android body passively following them; it was naked.

“Wow,” Greg said, as he watched an exact copy of him walk up and stop directly in front of him.

“As you can see, it looks exactly like you,” John said, showcasing the duplicate by moving around its limbs, “With the exception of the aesthetic modifications you requested,” he added, looking at the more neatly trimmed pubes, the neater finger and toe nails, and the absent scars. Greg had also opted to have all underarm hair removed, because he found it unhygienic.

“I know from seeing Sabrina’s new body these past few years, but this never ceases to amaze me,” Greg said, reaching out and touching his duplicate’s torso.

“It looks great,” Sabrina said, walking over to it and gently caressing its back.

“So Greg, is this body to your satisfaction?” John asked, having the body slowly turn around.

“Yes,” Greg said, after taking an extended look at his future body.

“Excellent!” John said, “Then if you’re ready, we can start the transfer process right away,”

“I am,” Greg said, “You said it would take all night, right?” he asked.

“Yes, though since your body was finished a tad early, the transfer should be complete by the morning,” John said.

“I don’t want to wake up here,” Greg said, “Is there any way you can arrange to have my new body delivered to our apartment?” he asked, “I’d like to wake up in my bed just like I’d slept there all night,”

“That can be arranged,” John said, “Ordinarily we’d prefer you be activated here in case there are any unforeseen issues with your body, but I am confident that everything will run smoothly,” John smiled.

“Thanks,” Greg smiled, as the technicians began prepping the equipment, and an anesthesia tank.

“Don’t mention it,” John said, “And I think it goes without saying that since you are field testing for us, everything is free of charge for the rest of your life,”

“Good,” Greg said.

“Now Greg, the next thing you should remember is waking up in your new body,” John said, as the technicians began attaching things to his body and bringing the gas mask up to his face.

Greg could only nod as he slowly lost consciousness. The last thing he saw was John and Sabrina smiling down at him. The odd thing was, John looked oddly relieved.

Part 4.3: New body

Greg had some pretty interesting dreams after the anesthesia put him out. For a moment, he perceived the strangest sensation of being sucked out of something he’d been in for as long as he could remember, and then he felt a sort of serene calm.

His next memory was of energy suddenly coursing through his body, and he slowly opened his eyes. For the briefest of moments, he saw nothing. Then, the image slowly appeared until it was as clear as he remembered…no, slightly better. He could tell he was in his bedroom back at the apartment.

He knew the transfer was a success when the HUD appeared in his field of vision, displaying his vital stats and initial diagnostic readings. His HUD also informed him it was roughly 10 in the morning.

He also noticed he was gaining access to all his other senses, and he could hear the sound of breathing just out of his field of vision, so he slowly turned his head and saw Sabrina smiling down at him.

“Good morning,” she said, “How are you feeling?”

“Fine, I think,” he said, still getting used to his new body, “Am I naked?” he asked, feeling on the bed sheets touching his skin.

“Yes,” she said, “You didn’t expect me to wrestle you into your pajamas, did you?” she smiled, “and I figured you might want to fully enjoy the sensations of your new body,” she added.

“I see,” he smiled.

“Are you able to move?” she asked, since he hadn’t moved anything but his head.

“I think so,” he said, moving his arms and lifting the sheets off his body.

Although Sabrina and the convert at the lab had already told him his new body would move just as naturally, he was still surprised by how natural it was. It really was like this was his body now, like he went to bed organic and woke up mechanical, but still felt mostly the same.

Once the sheets were off, he paused to look at his feet, wiggling his toes.

“I never thought I’d be able to do that again,” he smiled, wiggling them some more and then sitting up and sliding his legs off the side of the bed, feeling the soft carpet beneath his feet.

“So, do you still feel like you?” she asked, watching him feel his legs.

“Yes,” he said, “My mind was still processing during the transfer,” he said, “that’s proof enough for me,” he smiled.

“Good,” she smiled back, “I just wish your Sabrina could have had the same option,” she said.

“Yeah, but I’m just glad I’ve got you,” he said, grabbing her with his new arms and kissing her on the lips.

Once they broke apart, they looked at each other awkwardly for a moment before Sabrina broke the silence.

“So, did you want to go out and play with some of your functions?” she asked.

“Just like I did with you on your first day?” he smiled.

“Exactly,” she smiled back.

“Okay,” he said, getting up and taking a few steps towards the door, stumbling a bit.

“Hey, not so fast,” she said, catching him, “You haven’t walked since your accident remember?” she said, “You should probably try walking around in her first,”

“Alright,” he said, and he slowly started walking around their room until he felt comfortable.

“There, you see?” she smiled.

“Yes,” he said, feeling elated at being able to walk again, “Why don’t we go and play now?” he asked, heading to the door before pausing, “Hey, aren’t you going to take your clothes off?” he asked, since she was still dressed.

“Later,” she said, “I let you play with me two years ago, now it’s time to return the favor,” she said.

“Fair enough,” he said with a mock sigh, and they both walked out of their bedroom into the main room.

“Ah, you’re awake,” Ipek voice sounded from the kitchen, “How are you feeling?” she asked. She was in the process of cleaning the kitchen and restocking the pantry.

“I’m fine so far,” he said, “Thanks for asking Ipek,”

“Don’t mention it,” Ipek smiled, “If you need me, just call,” she said knowingly, and she got back to her work.

Greg and Sabrina sat in the same positions as before, though this time Greg was the focus.

“So, what do you want to do with me first?” he asked, now beginning to understand what it was like for her.

“Well, how much control over yourself do you have so far?” she asked.

“Well, I can see my HUD and all the diagnostic info,” he said, “But I can’t figure out how to make the HUD disappear or do anything with it,” he told her.

“Okay, well I think I should help you figure it out before we play around,” she said, “Basically, the HUD responds to your thoughts,” she explained, “Whichever section of it you focus on, just sort of create a mental click in your head and that should activate each submenu,” she told him, trying to find the right words to describe the experience.

“Mental click,” he smiled, trying to do as she suggested.

“Hey, it’s the best I could come up with,” she defended, “I was preprogrammed with all the information I needed to operate myself,” she said, “This was already natural to me,”

“Don’t worry, I believe you,” he said, and he focused on one of the submenus and created a mental click in his head. Instantly, the submenu appeared showing him various options for managing his current running processes. “Hey, it actually worked,” he smiled, perusing through each of the submenus and even managing to make the HUD hide itself.

“See, I told you,” she said smugly.

“You did,” he said, “So, now that I’ve got this figured out, what did you want to do with me?”

“Well, why don’t I start with your head,” she suggested, “just like you did with me,”

“Okay,” he said, “But I seem to recall starting with your tablet,” he told her as she approached the back of his neck.

“Yeah, but you don’t have a control tablet,” she said, “And you don’t have any voice commands either,” she added.

“Oh,” he said, “Well then, my head it is,” he smiled.

“My thoughts exactly,” she said, and before he could do anything else, she pressed the cranial release at the back of his neck and the effect was instantaneous.

He lost all control and feeling of everything below his neck. A status window appeared in his field of vision notifying him that his cranial release was activated, and that without access to his primary power systems, his head would run out of power in roughly two hours.

“Wow, this is weird,” he said, though he could feel he was speaking through his throat speaker at this point, despite Sabrina not having lifted his head off his neck yet.

“It’s about to get weirder,” she said mischievously, and she pulled him the rest of the way off and carried him away from his body and onto the chair she was sitting at. She then carefully set him down in her lap with his face up.

After he got used to his new position, he was suddenly overcome by a sort of euphoric laughter. “You were right,” he said.

“About what?” she asked.

“This is oddly relaxing,” he said, “not having to breathe, or keep my body upright,” he said.

“Yeah, it certainly is,” she smiled, remembering the first time he removed her head.

“You know what else I noticed?” he said, “I didn’t speak in robospeak when you removed my head,”

“Well, that robospeak is compliments of my A.I.,” she explained, beginning to feel his face with her soft hands, “Since you don’t really have one, you don’t speak it,” she said.

“Oh,” he said, “Did you want me to stop lip synching?” he asked, since she was still feeling his face.

“No,” she said, “I’m getting more than enough enjoyment,” she smiled, changing his facial expressions.

She played around with his head for several more minutes before getting bored. All the while he spent his time making himself familiar with all of his submenus.

“Alright, I’m ready to reattach you now,” she said, lifting his head back up.

“Could you let me see a close-up of my neck first?” he asked as she walked over to his headless body.

“Sure,” she said, and she held his head a few inches from his neck.

“It doesn’t look too different from your neck,” he observed, focusing his artificial eyes on every detail.

“Did you expect it to?” she asked in an amused tone of voice.

“I guess I did just a little,” he admitted.

“Well, aside from our gender and appearance, we’re still designed the same,” she said.

“I can see that now,” he said, “Could you reattach me now?” he asked.

“Sure,” she said, and she carefully lifted him over his neck and clicked him back in place.

“Whoa, that feels good,” he said, feeling he rush of energy throughout his body as he regained control of it.

“Yeah, doesn’t it?” she said, enjoying seeing his reactions to things she took for granted.

“I can see why you let me remove your head so often,” he smiled.

“You caught me,” she smiled back, putting her hands up, “It’s practically like an orgasm,” she said.

“I wouldn’t go that far,” Greg laughed, “But it was pretty close,”

“So, why don’t you let me see your feet?” she asked, sitting back down and scooching her chair closer to the table so he could rest his feet on it.

“Okay,” he said, sitting back down as well and extending his feet onto the table.

“Why don’t you try and remove them?” she suggested.

“Okay,” he said, and he quickly navigate through the submenus and activated the releases for both his feet. He immediately felt both feet go numb and he felt an odd burning sensation, as the seam appeared. “That feels so weird,” he said, once both seams were present, “How do you stand it?” he asked, once she grabbed one of his feet from his leg.

“Again, it’s all natural for me,” she said, examining his right foot, “Why’d you unseal both of them?” she asked, looking at the other one.

“So I can look at it,” he said, removing his remaining foot from his left leg and examining it.

He was pleased that not only were they able to make his nails look nicer, they also were able to make his foot bottoms softer. His real feet were always callused because he had always walked around barefoot, even outside. He also noticed that in the brief time his new body had been activated, a small amount of moisture had accumulated, creating a mild, familiar odor.

“Wow, this is still pretty unreal,” he said, playing around with the toes on his severed foot and bending it in his hands, “I can see how you still haven’t gotten bored letting me play with you,”

“Yeah,” she agreed, “I’m done with your foot now,” she then said, leaning forwards and clicking it back in place.

As soon as she clicked it back in place, an indicator appeared in his field of vision allowing him to reseal the seam, which he did, creating a cooler sensation than before.

“Wow, that sensation felt different,” he said, clicking his other foot back on and resealing it, “Unsealing felt like a burning sensation and resealing felt like a cool sensation,”

“Well, your body basically burns through the skin to reveal the seam, and then it is basically healing itself to reseal the seam,” she explained.

“Oh, that makes sense,” he said.

“So, how are you feeling so far?” she asked, “Now that you’ve been online for nearly an hour,” she added.

“I feel great,” he reported, “I thought a cold was coming on before I got shot, but now I don’t feel any discomfort at all,” he said, “I still feel like myself, but a lot better,”

“Well, glad to see we’re on the same page,” she smiled, “Though I didn’t really retain any of Sabrina’s memories of being sick,” she admitted.

“Well you’re fortunate,” he said, “It’s not something worth remembering,”

“I know,” she smiled, “So, why don’t you lay down on the couch and open up your primary access panel,” she suggested.

“Okay,” he said, and he quickly laid down on the couch and perused his submenus until he found the option to unseal his chest panel. He felt the same burning sensation as with his foot, and then the entire section of skin on his chest went numb.

“This is weird,” he said as Sabrina dug her fingers in between both seams and pulled both skin sections apart.

“Tell me about it,” she smiled, looking inside his open chest.

“Well, does everything look about the same?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” she said, “I’ve never actually been able to see my insides like this before,” she admitted, looking around at all the components in his chest.

“Oh, I thought it was all programmed into you,” he said.

“Only what each component is and does, not what they all look like,” she said.

“Well, I think I know what you’re planning on doing,” he said, thinking back to the first time he looked inside her, “Why don’t you do it?”

“Alright,” she said, putting her finger on his power distribution center, “Ready?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said, and then he felt all the energy disappear from his body and he lost consciousness.

After what seemed like only an instant, though his diagnostic read told him was nearly five minutes, his systems came back online.

“Wow, that felt different,” he said, once everything was back online.

“How so?” she asked, curious to see how he described the sensation.

“All my energy left me and then I descended into nothingness,” he explained.

“Yep, that’s about what it feels like,” she nodded in agreement.

“Man, you really are enjoying this, aren’t you?” he laughed.

“You bet,” she laughed back.

“What were you doing to me during the five minutes I was off?” he asked.

“Just playing around,” she said, not hiding her blush.

“I see,” he smiled.

“Well, let’s get you closed up so we can play around some more,” she said, flapping both sections back in place and allowing him to reseal himself.

“What do you want to do with me now?” he asked, “Wait, did I get a box of spare parts too?”

“Oh yeah, you did,” she said, quickly running over to the door and bringing a box over. She placed it on the table in front of the couch, “Here it is,” she smiled.

“Thanks,” he said, and he calmly popped the top open and looked inside.

He was not too surprised at the contents. On the top layer were two extra sets of his hands, then next layer had two extra sets of his feet, and the next had extra digestive bags, processors, and batteries. Despite knowing what lay in the bottom layer, he was still surprised to see a duplicate of his head staring up at him stoically.

“It’s weird, isn’t it?” she asked, watching the expression on his face.

“That’s an understatement,” he said, gently probing his backup head’s face, “Hey, I was wondering, now that I’m an android too, maybe we can, I don’t know, switch bodies sometime,” he said.

“I was wondering how long it would take for you to bring that up,” she said.

“So, you have given it some thought?” he asked.

“Yeah,” she admitted.

“And?” he asked.

“I think we should do it tomorrow,” she said.

“Why tomorrow?” he asked, “Why not now?”

“Well, first off, I think you should spend the rest of the day getting fully used to operating an android body,” she explained, “And, I think it would be interesting if we spent the entire day in each other’s body,” she finished.

“So we can spend a day in each other’s shoes?” he smiled.

“Exactly,” she smiled back.

“Well, I think that’s a wonderful idea,” he said.

“Great!,” she said.

“So, what should we do in the meanwhile?” he asked.

“Well, it’s my understanding that with your new body, you’re a virgin again,” she said with a kinky smile.

“Oh,” he said with a smile like the sun coming up, “I do believe you’re right,”

“Well, what say we correct that?” she suggested, starting to pull her clothes off.

“Alright,” he said, and they quickly headed to the bedroom, with Sabrina pulling her clothes off on the way, giggling as she did so.

The sexual experience in his new body was just as good, if not better than in his original body. The main difference he noted was that he didn’t seem to get tired, and based on the look on Sabrina’s face, she didn’t tire either. The only thing that made them stop was a sudden stomach grumble.

“Who was that?” Greg asked, as they rested between rounds.

“I think that was you sweetie,” Sabrina smiled, “It was your tummy,”

“Huh,” he said, “Well, I suppose I haven’t eaten anything yet, so it makes sense,” he said.

“Did you want to pause to get a bite to eat?” she asked, “I’m sure Ipek has already started lunch,” she added, looking at the clock.

“Sure,” he smiled, and they hopped out of bed and wiped themselves off with a towel before getting dressed and heading out.

After lunch, they spent the rest of the day getting used to Greg’s new body. After several hours though, they had unconsciously fallen back into their new routine. They went to bed that night anxious for their body switch the next day.

Part 4.4: A day in each other's shoes

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Continued in The Replacement - Part 5

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