Page 48 of Human Reform
I staredat the file on my desk and Dr.Alora Bridges smiled back at me from her identification photo.Something felt deeply wrong, like trying to recall a dream that slipped away with sunrise.The last four hours were a blur, fragmentary images that refused to connect in my mind.
“CyberEvolution neural systems programmer,” I read aloud, my finger tracing her credentials.“Top in her field.”
What I couldn’t understand was how I’d gone from selecting her as our solution to the neural glitches to… what she claimed had happened between us.Sex?Probably in my quarters?The notion was preposterous.I’d never invited a woman there, and I’d definitely never been intimate with one.
Yet…
When I looked at her photograph, something stirred within me.Not recognition exactly, but… longing?Impossible.I didn’t do longing.I didn’t do feelings.I had a colony to protect and systems to maintain.
I ran my hand over my face, trying to dislodge the persistent fog in my mind.Why couldn’t I remember implementing that patch or why I did it?The timeline made no sense.My memory felt like a corrupted file, sections missing or overwritten.
“Having fun with your light reading?”
Sage’s voice startled me from my thoughts.She approached my workstation with that trademark smirk, her ponytail swinging with each deliberate step.
“Just familiarizing myself with our guest,” I replied, closing the file.
Sage leaned against my desk.“Well, I’ve got news.Dr.Bridges has found a different way to patch our neural frameworks.Fix the glitches for good.”
My spine straightened.“That’s excellent.When can we implement it?”
“Now, actually.”Sage’s expression was unreadable.“But we need your help.Colony safety critical mission.You’re the only one who can do it.”
“Of course.”The answer was automatic.Duty before all else.“Whatever the colony needs.”
Something flickered in Sage’s eyes—satisfaction mixed with… guilt?I dismissed the thought.I was imagining strange things these past four hours.
“Great.Follow me to central processing.”
I fell into step beside her, my mind already mapping out implementation protocols and system redundancies.This was my purpose—logical, straightforward, and uncluttered by emotion.
When we arrived at central processing, Sage approached the security team monitoring the hub.
“We’ve got a breach on the perimeter,” she announced.“Sector seven.Need you all to check it out.”
Kel groaned.“Another false alarm?”
“Would I interrupt your thrilling day if it wasn’t important?”Sage shot back.
I frowned.“I didn’t receive any perimeter alerts.”
“Just came through on my wrist communicator,” Sage murmured, not meeting my eyes.
Something wasn’t adding up, but before I could analyze further, the security team filed out, grumbling.When the last one left, Dr.Bridges entered, somehow more vibrant and more stunning than when I saw her here four hours ago.Her eyes locked on to mine, and my heart rate inexplicably accelerated.
Sage locked the door behind her.
“What’s going on?”I demanded.
“Extra security,” Sage said smoothly.“For the new patch implementation.”
I studied her face, looking for deception.Finding none I could identify, I nodded once and allowed her to guide me to the chair before the main console.
Dr.Bridges approached cautiously, as if I might bolt.Up close, I noticed the silver flecks in her gray eyes and how her white T-shirt hugged curves that felt oddly familiar to my hands.
“Sit down, Daxon,” she said, her voice controlled but with an undercurrent of something raw.“This won’t take long.”
I complied, watching as she extracted a portable drive from her pocket, her hands trembling slightly.Was she nervous about her new patch working?Why did I have the overwhelming urge to comfort her?
