Inspektor 12 Kronicles 6: Liza-Beta
{Editorial Prologue: After a much, MUCH longer delay than the Author would have liked, the I-12K FINALLY resumes with the way-belated sixth chapter, just in time for the Holiday!! The focus here is on a bit of the good Inspektor's backstory, with the usual fun-n-games in the mix as well. For continuity, the Author suggests reading the following in chronological order:
Rosie
Gina
Rochelle
Maisie
Chase
Let the Saga continue!!!
Over the terrifying shriek of Rosie's desperately applied, magnetically-assisted airbrakes, there came an equally terrifying wail from the two lovely and utterly horrified mechanical women ensconsed within Rosie's center segment: "Sissie!!! Maisie's crashing!!!!"
"SO AM I - LITERALLY!!! Brace yourselves, my Sisters!!!" the big, vehicular 'bot bellowed over her internal comm. All at once, Chase, Gina, and the dreadfully malfunctioning Maisie were all violently hurled against the forward bulkhead of the bedroom compartment as Rosie's brakes locked up tight. Upon impact Maisie burst into a shower of sparks, and collapsed on the spot with a faint, distorted, and digitized moan of purest pain, amid one more burst of sparks. Chase and Gina fared a bit better, but they both still hit the bulkhead heavily as well, and also collapsed, stunned, on the spot. After Rosie lurched from side to side a few times, desperastely trying to control her crazily skidding chassis, she too had to take her lumps as a loud crunching "WHUMP!" and a violent lurch from her rear segment finally brought their wild ride to a sudden, jerky end. Chase was the first to regain her composure; the lovely auburn-haired lifesized doll carefully unwrapped her pull-chains from their tangle around her neck, and re-deposited them where they belonged hanging down her back. She looked around in great concern. "Sissie!! Are you okay?" To her left, Gina sat up, dazedly shaking her head. "Damn, Sugar-Rose!!! What the hell happened - something like eight blowouts all at once?"
From the speaker above them came Rosie's chirpy contralto, a bit pained and definitely not quite as bright as usual. "Oh, Lordy!!! I tried as hard as I could to avoid that damned avalanche, which ain't so easy at a 275 mph cruising velocity!! Stoopid boulders clipped my dainty little hiney - HARD!!!" The video monitor under the speaker came to life, and Gina and Chase could clearly see Rosie's rear third segment, still coupled but lying on its' side, several big dents in her curvy red derrierre. Gina said "Are your hydraulics okay, Rosie? Can you right yourself?" Rosie groaned and replied "Yeah the outriggers still work, but some of my internal systems are offline. It'll take me at least a couple hours to fix things though, and I'll need a lot of help. I got a stasis net on Maisie just before the skid, but how bad are Rochelle and Eye-Ball Plenty?" Both Gina and Chase couldn't help giggling at Rosie's remark, and privately Gina was also glad that despite her own difficulties, Rosie was still looking out for their emotionally delicate doll-sister Chase, hence her employing all the girls' pet name for their Beloved Inspektor. "His fever still hasn't broken, and 'Chelle's still in stasis, but her patches seem to be holding. Best we could hope for under the circumstances, Sugar." With a sigh, the voluptuous Fembot gently embraced her baby Sister and sat the both of them down next to the prostrate and thankfully dormant Inspektor 12 and Rochelle.
"Can one of you two check da Mistress, and make sure her short-out wasn't too catastrophic?" Chase bounced up immediately, further privately gratifying Gina; at least the plucky doll wasn't overtly traumatized by the sudden chaos and confusion. "She's got some fried circuits, but her core and CPU seem to be okay, Sissie. What can we do to stabilize her?" Rosie paused before answering carefully. "Chase honey, I'm not certain we can stabilize her. She was cascading just before I lost control, and I'm sure her nasty short-out didn't do her any other favors when we crashed." Rosie broke off, but not before both Gina and Chase heard the slight catch in their Sister's voice during her last few words. Chase plopped down again next to Gina, staring straight ahead, otherwise immobile. Gina attempted one of her loving Sisterly embraces, but the highly responsive Chase remained resolutely impassive, like some cold, crude mannequin. Shortly, she bowed her head - and aside from a small pool of tears that silently began to puddle on the floor beneath her, the shatteringly sexy wind-up woman remained still for quite some time. This greatly unnerved poor Gina, but before her own reaction could overcome her, her AI-frequency was suddenly rerouted; Chase didn't seem to notice as her Sister's equally sexy body slumped against her own, as if she simply passed out.
When Gina re-oriented, she was with Rosie, up in her cab. "What's up, Sugar? Why the reroute?" Although Rosie was trying to disguise it, Gina could easily feel Rosie's obvious considerable pain, both physical and emotional. "It's Chase, Geen - I didn't want her to hear how bad things really are. By the time we can fix all the damage and stabilize the others properly, it'll surely be too late for Maisie - and possibly Rochelle and even Inspektor 12. When I stasis-netted Da Mistress, the feedback confirmed a fragmenting-parasite had got her." Although disembodied, Gina nonehteless felt an icy chill as Rosie's words sank in. A fragmenting parasite was Abandon All Hope for AI's. Sensing Gina's shock, Rosie immediately triggered her soothing elctronic wash; her virtual equivalent of passionate hugs and kisses. Both were silent for several minutes, letting the wash mingle with their burgeoning grief and despair; it did help some, but not enough. Fortunately, both Sisters had very strong AI-constitutions, and both soon rallied out of their own grief and shock to look after the others again. Silently, Rosie sent Gina's frequency back to her chassis. Gina straightened up from her slump against Chase just as Chase herself raised her head, an odd, vacant look in her eyes that chilled Gina anew. She held Chase tightly. "You okay, Honey?" Gina's voice was as soft and loving as she could make it. As if reviving from a deep coma, Chase shuddered, then turned to look her Sister squarely in the eyes.
Gina was stunned by her baby Sister's lovely eyes - they were huge, but clear - no evidence whatsoever of her prior weeping. Furthermore, the orange flecks present when Chase was properly wound up were now verging on a yellow-white tinge; it looked like the doll's striking, deep-brown eyes had literally caught fire from within. "Geen, please give it to me straight - we can't save Maisie or Rochelle without at least a minor miracle, can we?" The calmness in Chase's voice startled Gina all over again; what was going on here? Before she could stop herself, Gina suddenly grabbed Chase in a fierce bearhug, and exploded into tears, her piteous sobs preventing conversation. Amazingly enough, Chase responded warmly this time, equalling her Sister's embrace, and stroking her hair and back as she gently showered her with kisses. Once Gina realized what was going on, the shock was so great that her sobbing stopped instantly, and she pulled back from her bearhug just enough to meet Chase's gaze again. How could she tell her lovely baby Sister that they were about to lose a good chunk of their Family? And why was Chase behaving so oddly? Before the upset Fembot could find her sultry voce, Chase met her with a passionate deep-kiss, gently laying her back until she was fully prone as she did so. She then suddenly bounded up and took off for Rosie's cab, her high bootheels rapping excitedly as she went. Now totally flustered, Gina got up and collected the dormant Maisie, tenderly arranging her seriously damaged Sister in the space she just vacated.
As she finished with a light kiss on her mechanized Sister's unresponsive lips, Rosie's speaker and monitor came to life. "Geen, what's Our Miss Doll up to? She's not acting like someone who's just been told half her bloody family's dying! You did tell her, didn't you?" Gina sighed sadly. "I didn't have to, Sissie - she guessed it straightaway; all I did was confirm her guess." She choked back a small sob. "Her eyes were really funny, too; it was almost like she was posessed, or something. I've never seen her eyes look that way before." A fresh shock raced through Gina. "Rosie!! You don't think Chase is sick too, do you?" From Rosie's speaker came - of all things - a peal of laughter; real, genuine, not-forced-or-hysterical laughter. Shortly, the room itself began to vibrate too - Rosie was having a literal belly-laugh! After a couple minutes, and still giggling and vibrating frequently, Rosie said "No, no Geen - Chase is fine; no symptoms or glitches, or anything. Say! She's talking to Liza right now - one sec whilst I adjust." The monitor shifted, and now Gina could see the lovely Liza on Chase's monitor up in Rosie's cab. The gorgeous brunette was smiling brightly at Chase as she spoke, and for some strange reason Gina felt a good deal of the tension and anguish inside her ease up. If Inspektor 12's literal right hand was on the case, well, they just might have a chance yet. Suddenly, several things happened at once; Chase abruptly ended her vid-conference with Liza, the room briefly went dark, and Gina was startled to feel Rosie's AI-presence suddenly within her. Before either of the confused Sisters could re-orient, they both heard Chase's bootheels rapping back towards them at a brisk trot.
She entered just as the auxiliary power kicked in, and the lights came up. Both Sisters were stunned by how animated and poised Chase seemed - almost radiant. She flashed Gina one of her most brilliant smiles. "Okay you two, please hold your questions until I give you the lowdown. Rosie, Liza rerouted your AI-frequency by remote just now; she or I will explain later. We need to do some quick hot-rodding of Rosie's chassis, secure Maisie, Rochelle, and the Inspektor, then go like a bat out of hell for home. With any luck, we ought to be there in six hours," Gina and Rosie were both stunned, and they both internally felt that their dear baby Sister had gone right off the deep end. She seemed so sure and confident however, that they kept their counsel, and set about helping implement the plan. On balance, Chase had been talking a while with Liza, and if anyone could figure a way out of this awful mess, she could. Gina wondered about Liza too; although she knew her fairly well, and loved her to death like all her other Sisters, she wondered just how far back - and how intimately far back - she went with their Beloved Inspektor. At this point, Rosie erupted in a fit of laughter again, and Gina had to quickly stabilize her balance, lest she slip off the ladder she was on in Rosie's engine compartment just now. **What gives, Literally Big Sis? Why the guffaws this time?** she thought to the other sharing her mind. Rosie giggled some more, and said **Geen, I can answer all of your questions, and then some. Put this file on in the background, but up enough so we can hear the auto-narration while we work. I'll mentally daisy-chain Chase, too. It'll help make these repairs go a lot faster.** Gina was all for it, and briefly amused to note that their recent experiments with the creative sharing of AI-frequencies was indeed paying dividends on the spot. Without pause, she continued her frantic labors.
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Liza-Beta 2.0 - The Prequel
Thank God it was all finally over with. Thirty-two countries, 650 concerts; a year and a half of solid travel. Satellite linkups, global podcasts, sveral billion metric tons of PR-bullshit; clubs, symphonic halls, ampitheaters, stadiums, festivals; a literal sea of excited faces, all clamoring for his time, attention, room-key, third leg, the next several rounds, credit-card number, his autograph on an anciently-burned Koran, or any of a million-plus other odd pieces of him. But by golly, he'd pulled it all off without a hitch. A world tour in support of a wildly-popular song-cycle { "albums" were so 20th-Century} had made him, in the space of nineteen months, SERIOUSLY wealthy. All he needed now was just the right investment or two, and he'd be set for life. Little did he know that a rather sexy golden goose was waiting for him already - in the unlikeliest of places. He was looking forward to this last leg of the exhausting globe-trot; a quick overnighter on the bullet-train between The Big Apple and Mile-High City. He'd collect his truck from storage, and be home in his secluded mountain cabin in a little under 12 hours from now. A relaxing period of no responsibilites at all appealed strongly to him. He'd seen more than enough of the world and its' triumphs and tragedies when he was out and about, and quite frankly he was fucking well played out by now. It was time to start looking out for #1 for a change. Without thinking, he smiled his most dazzling "rock star smile" at the pretty blonde who was handling the boarding of the railway car he was assigned to. She blushed deeply, but flashed him a bright smile of her own. "You're in Suite 91762, Sir, which is our finest accommodation." Flashing another, larger bright smile, she slyly quipped "Perhaps you're thinking of joining the 200mph-club tonight?" She blushed deeper as he gently caressed her arm and drawled "Perhaps, provided I can find the right ah, co-conspirator." He though she was going to faint when he shot his customary teasing wink at her; her knees did buckle, and she had to grab a handrail to steady herself. He left her then, and was soon comfortable in his luxury suite; it was sumptuous enough to completely dispel the actuality of it simply being a room in a rather unimpressive landbound vehicle. It looked for all the world like a small, but exceedingly decadent hotel suite in miniature, right down to mohagony panelling, full-plush carpeting, and a magnificent queensize bunk, for his night of slumber - how "restful" still to be determined.
Ever since the bullet train came into being, he'd heard all kinds of wild stories about the "200mph-club." Much like the airborne "mile-high club," he was certain that most of the stories were locker-room exaggerations, which of course, most were. However, THE most outrageous of them all were the rumors about the railway actually providing - get this - mechanical companions "for the ultimate in fast, luxurious pleasure." Make it with a machine, at 200mph? What if the train crashed? What if SHE crashed, when the train crashed? And what if one climaxed, during her crash, while the train was crashing - would there be anything left to feel it OR clean up what little remained afterwards? Shaking his head and chuckling vigorously, he was roused out of his reverie by a gentle knock on the door of his suite. "Courtesy call and ticket-check, sir!" He was intrigued by the bright, cheerful tone in the female voice he heard - and literally stunned when he opened the door, and beheld the body that voice came out of. Although dressed in the standard railway uniform he'd seen on the blonde car-attendant, the brunette he was looking at filled out her working attire rather more {or less}, in ways that made his libido {and a few other things} spring instantly to rigid attention. Her bright-red blazer concealed an ample bustline of what he was certain were two perfect globes of just his favorite size to "play" with. Her short royal blue skirt was made even shorter by her pertly rounded ass, and outrageously sexily-curved hips. Her ensemble was completed, and her shapely legs enhanced by, a pair of shiny white knee-high boots, the heels of which raising her height from what he correctly guessed to be 5'5" to a pleasant 5'8". This enabled him to gaze directly {if still slightly downward} into the loveliest pair of deep-brown eyes he had ever seen in his life. She had gorgeous, shimmering shoulder-length hair that had a wavy, totally undefined style to it that mesmerized him immediately, it suited her SO perfectly.
Impulsively, he brough his arms up and gently caught his quite fetching attendant in a loose embrace, drawing her ever-so-slightly closer to him. "Luv, I'm new to this whole experience, and I'd appreciate it if you'd clue me in on the finer points so I don't randomly score a case of the 'oh-shit, shouldn't have dun dats?' Rather bad form, should such happen at the bitter end of me year and a half jaunt, kapish?" He favored her with a dazzling smile, then - not the "rock star" one, which he mainly used for teasing purposes. His real, genuine Cheshire-cat expression that was even more potent than the artifice. Surprisingly, the brunette embraced him in similar fashion, drawing herself even closer to him. She then gave him a quick kiss and said brightly, "Sure thing - that's exactly why I'm here, Sir. My function is to see to all the needs and comforts of our VIP's. Where shall we start?" The way she was looking at him inflamed his mind; her response, actions, and continuing body-English also sent loud, obvious messages in confirmation. And her actual conversation sealed the deal; all the cards were now on the table. Sizing up the situation at light-speed {a talent of his that helped him attain his current lot in life}, he silently drew her all the way in to him for a deep, lingering kiss, which she met and returned eagerly, twining one of her shapely boot-clad legs around one of his as they kissed. Her loving lips literally electrified him as their mutual passion rose up and took off. Before either one of them knew it, they were in his bed, having at each other's bodies with a total abandon that has to be experienced to be believed, or fully understood. A half-hour later, they settled down for some afterglow and cuddle-time. She looked up at him from her heads' place on his shoulder and giggled. "Oh, by the way - welcome to the 200mph-club, Loverboy!" He pulled her in for another kiss. "Yeah? Well, if that's the case, then you're the best damn robot I've ever had." As he deeply kissed her again, he started laughing, and reluctantly broke off. "Come to think of it, you're the first damn robot I've ever had!!! And you sure as hell don't look or act much like that jumped-up "Virtual-Ain't-Actual-Broad" some jerk tried to sell me in Timbuk-wherever-the-fuk last month. Robots have come a long way, yes, but they haven't come within a country mile of YOU yet, Luv. Care to explain that bit about the 2MC myth, from a true insider's perspective?"
Still laughing heartily, he gave her one more quick kiss, and was surprised when she held his head, preventing him from rising like he intended. He was stunned to see that she was crying silently, but oddly enough she was also smiling at him in a way that can only be described as radiant. "What's wrong, Luv - did I say something hurtful?" She drew his head further down, and cradled it on her magnificent bosom. She heaved a large, blissful feminine sigh that drove him wild with renewed desire for every last square micron of her stunningly beautiful body. "Oh, no Honey - matter of fact, you said all the right things, and more." Without moving from his lovely pillows {he always maintained his priorities, of course}, he said "Oh? How so, Beautiful?" She released her embrace of him, and gently raised his head from her exquisite chest to meet her gaze. "I'll explain after dinner, once we both get cleaned up, okay?" Baffled but intrigued, he kissed both of her luscious breasts exactly where he knew it would make her squeal, and once she twice obligingly did so, he moved up and kissed her deeply on her perfect Cupid's-bow lips. "It's a date, Dear Heart. Let's get cracking!" Although way too brief for his liking, they enjoyed their shared shower immensely, and strengthened their lover's bond accordingly. He'd never met a woman who seemed to know him so well, or appealed to his intellect as well as his libido - both in equal measure, to boot. After their delicious dinner they retired to the settee, which afforded a fine, if blurred view of the speeding countryside. Since it was well nighttime, conversation was the only other option for now. After the pair were settled, she slowly unbuttoned the sleeveless red satin blouse worn under her long-discarded blazer, and started pressing her navel in a pattern he didn't quite grasp. To his utter astonishment, an oval panel was suddenly formed, her navel at the center. Remaining mute, she removed it and set it gently on the settee beside her.
For five silent minutes, he stared at the blinking lights, bundled transistors and circuit-boards, and delicate wiring concealed in the cavity she had now exposed for him. Now and again his eyes would flick to her gold name-badge pinned above her right breast on her open blouse, then back down. When he finally came back to himself he looked up and saw that she was silently crying and beaming at him again. He stood her up, and held her tight, heedless of her now exposed innards, and dripping eye-moisture. "Oh, Liza!!! Why didn't you just blurt out the truth from the beginning? It wouldn't have changed the way I already feel about you!!" She looked askance at him. "Are you sure about that, Tommy? Before my 'big reveal' you seemed rather skeptical about my kind." Tommy paused to briefly take stock - she made a good, valid point. Within a short time though, a knowing grin began to spread on his face, and he sat both of them back down. "Liza-Luv, until I met you, the idea - and actuality - of a female robot as sentient and sophisticated as you was laughable to me. I've been intrigued by robots of all kinds since I was but a tenderling, and so far my working life has given me the wherewithal to keep abreast of the hush-hush stuff as well as the general knowledge stuff. Might even try to break into the field myself, one day. Unless you came from a brand-new 'skunk works' that has security I honestly envy, there just hasn't been one hint about how high the bar of female robotics might be raised, which it obviously has been. I'm privy to virtually any kind of secret I care to find out, thanks to my interest and wealth, but your place of OEM hasn't blipped my radar even in the slightest." Her tears had stopped, and her beaming had increased, but he wasn't done with her yet. She was about to Feel His True Power {insert lascivious wink here}, and neither one of them would ever be the same again.
"And before you can even mention it, I'll explain one angle I know you're aware of - the female angle. One thing you have to understand about me is that at my very essence, I simply adore ALL females with all the love and passion and respect you could imagine. It hardly matters to me if their nature is organinc or synthetic - or even purely fictional, like the characters in a shoddy Internet-fetish-forum tale, or whatever. Females to me are to always be cherished and revered - period. The fact that you "smited" me almost instantly, and our Love has begun to bud and blossom rapidly, owes much more to the essence of what you are, rather than the nature of what you are. 'Woman is, as Woman does,' in other words, and YOU my Love are quite some Woman, indeed!" She pounced on him then, with renewed tears of incredible joy, and the the heat was on once again in a rather large and quite wild way, this time. In later years both would look back fondly on this very night, knowing that this was precisely when a certain legendary Family-Harem had been truly born. The all-too-brief night of shared passion and amazing discovery Tommy and the astounding female robot Liza enjoyed together was soon over, as was the cross-country trip itself a short time later. Their overall time as a couple had only just begun, however. Liza resigned her position with the railway the instant her tour of duty was over, was cheerfully released with many a "Congratulations!" and ecstatically joined Tommy for the ride up to his secluded mountain cabin - where for the next several months any outside onlooker would have sworn that they were simply a happy couple enjoying an extended honeymoon, if prone to the odd spot of mindless mayhem and rather scandalizing sexy public behavior now and again. Which to a large degree they were, but they were also laying plans that would come close to global-dominance, in terms of both overall scope, and worldly impact.
You see, the reason Liza and her few Sisters' very existence was basically unknown is because they and their complex technology had only been very recently developed - under the tightest security possible - by the railway itself in an attempt to fully automate the railway's onboard personnell in an attractive way, pun deliberate. Then too, there was the dual goal of eventually branching out into the tech-market as a means of diversification once the fembots were perfected. Unfortunately, further project development wasn't possible at that time because the railway was forced to spend its' working capital elsewhere, mainly to tighten general security for its' customers, as the terrorists had finally started to successfully target all railways across the globe. The female robot project, codename "Depot," might could continue if a strong financial backer could be found. To maintain the tightest security possible, they quietly cast about every back channel available for potential prospects, looking in the most unlikeliest of places - and Tommy made all the shortlists once he was noticed, including the final one. Liza was therefore literally manufactured for the sole purpose of winning his assets and talents, while simultaneously offering a suitably large reward in return, should he accept. As such, she was initially programmed with the full crash-course on him, instantly absorbing every last detail the railway could glean to date, stretching all the way back to his birth and youth. As a popular and famous musician, this was a relatively easy task and Liza was soon completed and fully programmed, ready to set her well-baited hook when the time finally came. From her perspective, this was a literal Blessing from Heaven. Liza's extremely sophisticated AI had enabled her the full range of human thought, emotions, and desires from the initiation of her manufacture, if only to add verisimilitude to her functions as a believable human female. It also allowed her to be a bit picky about the liaisons she would grant - until Tommy had come along, Liza had discretely avoided the regular patrons who wished to become "2MC" members, always delegating another Sister to do the heavy moaning and petting. Tommy had been her first - and her mind was made up that he would damn well be her last too, if she had any say in the matter. She knew that Tommy was a man of many passions, and thanks to her crash-course on him she shared all the ones she didn't already have herself; she was as romantic as he was, for example. Theirs would be a Love that would shake the Firmament, she was absolutely sure.
Tommy had thus found two things he'd been searching for; a fine {mechanical} woman to share his great good fortune with, and an equally fine way to invest said great good fortune, so it could perpetuate and keep him comfortable with Liza indefinitely. He quickly met and befriended all the railway's movers and shakers from the top on down; and in short order a brilliant strategy was quietly in place, and soon implemented. The world at large subsequently reacted in the mildest fashion possible when a fierce corporate-scourge type suddenly arrived like a bolt from the blue, descended on the railway, and proceeded to viciously and ruthlessly "clean house," to the point of gutting virtually all corporate assets, save the core of the railroad itself. Rumors of massive layoffs and firings, huge and questionable asset / financial finagling, and all the myriad other trappings of a classic hostile corporate-takeover soon captivated those few who were closely following the developments, but yet remained totally ignorant of the underlying truths. Rumor also had it that the Scourge, in Typical Scourge Fashion, had carted off all the best assets to use and exploit himself, but by then the dramatic story had become stale and boring, in the ADD peanut-brains of the all too fickle audience. It died quietly soon enough, and life in general went on. Although precious few noted that the latest Scourge cryptically called himself "Inspektor 12," the new moniker didn't resound a whit, and even they soon were distracted, not knowing that a Legend had just been born, literally right before their very eyes. Hell, no one even realized that "Inspektor 12" bore an uncanny resemblence to a certain globally-famous musician called Thomas Christopher McCauley, who had mysteriously vanished without trace after concluding a successful world tour just a few months previous!! In time, that would change drastically; but for now a sudden but "nasty" corporate raid simply didn't register deeply, as many such other similar raids {and much, MUCH worse} were constantly vying for media-time and audience attention in the perpetual struggle events and the stories later told about them share 24-7/365, ad nauseum.
Which is precisely how all the actual players in this quietly devious and wickedly clever little game wanted it. The railway was restructured and streamlined more or less the way the rumors had it, but the plan had been long in place already, waiting for the rather considerable resources needed to implement it. The mass "layoffs and firings" were actually early retirement offerings with generous benefits for any who wished to participate. To each and every individual who accepted the offer, not a single one was disappointed or hurt by the portfolios they received. All grew, and provided handsomely for their investors continuously, right up to the present day. The remaining rank and file, already well looked-after, became even moreso as the new blood their employer had acquired reinvigorated and revitalized their endeavor at all levels. The cries of "financial finagling" were a simple smokescreen that hid the actual transactions - all of them on the investment side - by providing casual and not-so-casual onlookers with a convenient truth to believe in, if they didn't wish to dig for it themselves - which of course, nobody did. No finances were ever lost, stolen, "diverted," or otherwise misplaced or misused; every last cent was documented, accounted for, and quickly put to good use. The only assets Tommy actually did cart off and "exploit" were Liza herself {her true robotic nature still totally unknown}; the railway's prized mascot three-car trainset that launched the company way back when; and the whole of Project Depot, which soon emerged as something called Robo-Depot, a stand-alone startup firm, specializing in female robots, of course. In return, his generous investments revived the railway, and enriched the lives of all who worked for it or invested in it. Tommy acquired a legitimate seat on the railway's board {as himself}, whilst his "Inspektor 12" alter-ego headed up R-D near the end of this opening scenario; he has happily maintained the two sides of the same coin - er, life ever since. Tommy and Liza-Beta quickly became forever-more devoted to each other, and for a good decade-plus they were as literally inseperable as conjoined twins. And their joint dividends continue to pay off richly in the present................
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Liza-Beta 3.0: In Which the Sith's Revenge on "The Dog Was Named Indiana" Jumps The Shark In Search Of Spock - Or, How I Stopped Worrying And Fucking Well Capped Jar-Jar, Then Nuked the Fridge, Incognito. {Let's see you top THAT, movie-punsters!!}
As Gina, Chase, and Rosie finally finished their frantic repairs and modifications to Rosie's chassis and prepared to depart on the last leg of their desperate journey, the mechanized trio reflected on all the Family history they had absorbed. Rosie had known most of the details before the other two of course, since she had originally served as Robo Depot's corporate mainframe as her amazing AI-personality was nurtured and developed. Still and all, there were some gaps that even she didn't know the truth of, but nonetheless it was good for them all to get in touch with their roots again, especially in this time of crisis. Although all three were exhausted, Gina and Rosie were stunned when Chase returned from her quick final inspection to make sure all was in order, climbed into Rosie's cab, and started to manually drive the leviathan vehicle towards their destination as calm as could be!!! Gina felt Rosie's AI-presence literally leap from her mind; bemused, she trotted up to Rosie's roomy cab, and tiredly flopped down in the passenger's chair, which she soon reclined. She and Rosie spoke in unison: "Okay Chase, honey - spill the beans on this Grand Plan of yours." Rosie added from her speaker "For starters, why am I still mostly offline? And why the hell are you driving my chassis manually? Ain't I the vehicular expert around here any more?" Both Gina and Chase giggled at Rosie's haughty tone of voice, and both were immensely reassured that Rosie's beloved impish humor was still with her and them. When she recovered her breath, Chase smiled winningly up at Rosie's speaker, and patted her dash tenderly. "Liza will fill both you girls in on the other stuff in a sec; for now though, Sissie, the reason you're not governing your chassis is because we had to borrow and re-direct some of your main CPU's functions, to beef up your primary motor and electrical capacity. Technically, you could drive now, but you wouldn't be able to see or get road-feedback; deaf, dumb, and blind at over 400 mph really wouldn't be prudent!" Releasing a quick giggle, Chase finished with "Like I said before, Liza will explain it all shortly."
Rosie snorted, in mock disgust: "Well! So you lot mutinied, and made me a Ghost Within My Own Danm Shell then, eh? There's gonna be Hell to pay, once I get all my faculties back! You'll see - BL shall hear of this, Und den heds vill rrroll, Klink!!! BAAAAAHHHHH!!!!" This was way too much for Gina and Chase; both instantly exploded into gales of loud laughter in response to Rosie's acidic mock-tirade, with a nod to the ancient "Hogan's Heroes" television progam as the foundation. She had Inspektor 12's devilish mannerisms, and deliciously wicked humor and delivery down perfectly. It was almost as if he himself were there, imitating Rosie imitating him! All were still laughing or giggling merrily when the monitor on Rosie's dash came to life, and Liza's stunningly beautiful face came into focus. "My goodness!! Did our Dear Inspektor suddenly revive, and tickle-attack all of you with one of his ostrich feathers again, or can I get in on the fun too, by remote?" Liza's quip got Gina and Rosie giggling harder, but Chase managed to compose herself enough to talk somewhat intelligibly. "Hey Den-Mama!! If these two nitwit Sisters of mine would ever get a grip on their bloody reaction-circuits, maybe you can fully explain the plan we cooked up and launched. I'm a little busy right now, y'know." Liza smiled when Chase couldn't help letting one more giggle out at the end of her comment. She was obviously coping well with everything at present, so the lovely brunette focused on Gina and the somewhat disembodied Rosie, who were still twittering and firing off silly puns and crazy one-liners to each other. "Girls, where should I start? Rosie, how about with you?" Rosie's still-giggling chirp was instant. "Sure thing, Liza! Why did I have to give up governing?" Liza smiled warmly. "Sweetie, we had to divert some of your CPU's flow to augment your main engine for more power and speed, and also augment your electrical generator to support the ad-hoc life-support system you and Gina rigged in your baggage compartment." Both Rosie and Gina were now more or less sober, and paying rapt attention.
"Oh, that's what we built, is it? I thought we were just pressurizing the compartment for the Inspektor, to give him a more air-cushioned ride?" Gina's voice sounded bone-weary, although there was still more than a trace of mirth at the edges. Still smiling warmly, Liza shook her pretty head. "No, no, Darlin'. You actually routed current throughout the alloy framework of the compartment so we could in effect make it a strong magnetic chamber. It's the same basic idea as the super heavy-stasis chamber here at the plant that we use to prepare one of us for heavy repairs, or major surgery, if you will. And it should buy us enough time to get all of you back here safely, and in time to help the others." Everyone was silent, thinking about that. Gina glanced over at Chase, who was concentrating on her driving. The lovely doll, though intent, didn't seem to have a trace of nervousness as she effortlessly guided Rosie's huge chassis as well as Rosie herself could do. Gina gaped in astonishment when she saw the speedometer, and wirelessly summoned Rosie to join her chassis, and see for herself. Rosie was so incredulous, she momentarily overrode Gina's voice control and blurted aloud "Six hundred seventy-five??!!?!?? I've never gone above 450, myself!!! Never could flex my muscles that hard. Howdja do it, and can I keep the knack, after?" This time, it was Liza who exploded in laughter when she saw and heard Gina take on Rosie's voice and mannerisms. "Oh, you two are the utter limit!!! I'm going to have to keep the same eye out for your japes now, that I do for the Big Guy himself!!" She giggled incessantly for a couple more minutes, before continuing.
"It's all very simple, Girls. Each one of us has tremendous overcapacity designed and built into us when we are first manufactured. Depending on what our primary function is, it may get used regularly, occasionally, or not at all. But it's always there in case of emergency, and I took advantage of that knowledge to devise this whole plan while you were dealing with all the sudden new calamities. In a nutshell, by redirecting a few basic systems we've doubled the power of your already wonderfully strong chassis, Rosie-dear. The drawback is that you'll need a full overhaul once you arrive, because field mods just aren't as rugged as a proper factory upgrade. I think it's a small price to pay for all our Loved One's sakes, don't you?" In unison, Chase, Rosie and Gina aswered her with an enthusiastic "HELL YEAH!" - which of course got all of them roaring with laughter again, being one of the Inspektor's favorite verbal "bombs" he'd drop when least expected. Thus reassured, they soon settled down to anxiously await the end of this awful journey. Just before Gina was about to power down for a quick cat-nap, she got up and gently reached behind Chase, and carefully pulled both her winding-chains several notches. Still totally focused on her driving, her Darling Baby Sister reached back and pulled Gina's head in for a quick upside down deep-kiss, and a brilliant smile after. "Thanks, Geen - that really felt good!! I needed that, for sure. Why don't you have Rosie join you in your chassis and recline your seat fully? Sissie, have you ever felt one of your own massages? I think you might like it!!" Chase's punctuating giggle made Gina want to cry, a feeling soon doubly strong, once Rosie's AI frequency joined hers. **She's SO brave, isn't she, Sissie?** Gina's thought-pattern was quavering with emotion. **She sure is, Sugarbritches. Makes me really dread what's likely in store for the poor dear - and the rest of us, too.** Gina's wan smile at Rosie's use of one of the Inspektor's naughty nicknames for her faded as the reality of the rest of her Sister's thought sank in. They truly were in for it all, now.
Rosie's next thought seemed to issue from her sleep, as Gina physically activated the seat's manual massage-control. **Damn!! Our Miss Doll was right - I AM good!! Leave me just like this, and please don't wake me when it's over, n'kay?** Gina teasingly sent out a quick, sharp electronic wash of her own to Rosie; a virtual equivalent of a spank. **STOP THAT, Silly!! Let's both enjoy this while we can, pretty-please?** Rosie's sleepy answering giggle was all she could muster before both were blissfully offline, whilst Chase watchfully guided their now-screaming progress, carefully tracked and monitored by the amazing Liza-Beta, still present for the duration, via remote.
{Editorial Epilogue: This and about 1/3 of the next chapter are all that remain of the original Kronicle - the other five chapters completed at the time {late 2008} were lost when my then-computer became "collateral damage" in my d'horse. Rough outlines did survive the "malaise" however, and these proved invaluable for reconstruction purposes. As with the first five chapters, I have to tip my hat to two other fine Authors here - DukeNukem and gynoneko - for the wonderful inspiration they gave me through their own epics, "The V.I.C.I. Diaries," and "Exo Saves the Day," respectively. You Dudes rock to the max!!! If ya don't believe me, wait until future chapters appear........... 
The rest of this Saga will come out in fits and starts, as the re-construction has taken on a life of its' own; but I do plan to get it ALL out, this time!! Patience WILL be rewarded, believe me. And please feel free to make with any and all feedback - I can't improve my work if I'm playing to da cricketses now, can I?}