8 - Moving In

Posted on Sun Apr 21st, 2024 @ 6:21pm by Dungeon Master Sue Donym

1,110 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Chapter 3 - Unusual Business
Location: New New York Outskirts
Timeline: 2090

Only a few days later, they were already moving into a new apartment in one of the new expansion zones on the outskirts of New New York. Aurelia had an entire third story wing dedicated to her machinations. It was a bit overwhelming since she never had this much space even in her old life and she knew space here on this red planet was at a premium. On top of that, she was able to negotiate some support staff, including Ryder as security and her new friend in the organization as her dedicated support and liaison. On top of that, they had assigned her a dozen drones and a secretary that seemed to be one of those android simulacrum people. They mostly looked like a normal human externally, but magically they felt nothing like one and their movements and speech patterns belied that they were definitely not.

Aurelia sighed and pointed at a new, empty desk as one of the drones carried a box of crystals and gems she was supposed to do something with. "Those can go there for now. Take the clothes to the second office. There should be racks set up there for us to hang them up on. As for the broken electronics, those can go to the third office. I'll have to do some research about those first and we might need someone more knowledgeable about them."

She then turned towards the android and sighed heavily. "You know, when he said a few things, I didn't expect this sort of workload. I don't suppose there's a time frame included with all of this?"

"Negative." The vaguely feminine android replied, looking over a data pad. "There are multiple requests along with the included items, primarily including espionage and security, but other than the hopes of timely completion, there is no dedicated set deadline."

"That's good at least. It still feels like he's pushing the bounds of our agreement and trying to monopolize my time and powers. I'm Aurelia by the way," she added, holding out her hand in greeting. Mentioning Lucious, she couldn’t help but think about how charming he had been and the amazing dinner they had shared.

"My designation is BX-117A. It is memorable meeting you, Lady Aurelia," they replied, offering their hand back, barely looking up from the data pad. "If you require a technical assistant, I have several I can recommend to you immediately, including one that already resides in this building and is known for discretion."

Aurelia nodded, taking note that the android's hand wasn't cool like stone like she expected, but warm to the touch and soft. It seemed that the people of this world were far better at crafting artificial people than the golem masters of her old world. "We'll start with them, then. If you could set up a meeting, I'd appreciate it. Also, if we're going to be working together, I need something to call you other than what reminds me of a specimen number. Do you have a name?"

"Negative. As an android, I serve humanity with the designation I was given. When my function is updated, my designation is updated."

"Is that so... Well, I'm going to call you... Becca. You look like a Becca to me. Are you ok with that?"

Becca looked up in seeming surprise for the first time from her work. "I... Yes. I understand. Thank you. Secondary designation of Becca recorded for future use."

“Excellent. Now I just need to figure out which bedroom to make my own, where the kitchen is…” Aurelia stared at the main office as the drones organized things around her. One of them flew past her carrying a case with several rather exquisite pieces of jewelry which caught her eye the likes of which she hadn’t even seen in her old world. Platinum bands and chains ornamented with fancy woods and gems that even she couldn’t identify, yet just by looking at them, she could see held traces of magical energy.

Pointing toward the case as the drone set it on a shelf, she asked Becca about it. “What’s the request for these?”

Becca looked down at her pad for a moment before replying. “That one is an indirect request. The New New York Council members are interested in unique properties added to some of their accessories and it seems the Crimson King is hoping to curry favor by providing the impossible via your skills rather than technologically with the corporations. Requests include…”

She held up a hand and interrupted her new assistant before she got too far into what she was saying. “I think I understand well enough. Thank you, Becca. Well, if he can curry favor with the government, that means that indirectly, so can I. I’m ok with this for now.” Aurelia nodded sagely and pointed to one of the larger gems on her desk. “Let’s do some easier magic to start with, shall we? These crystals are supposed to glow softly and act as surveillance, right?”

Becca already had an answer ready. “Yes, ma’am. Are there any supplies you need for completion of this job?”

“Let’s find out. Normally I’d use a mirror or a crystal ball or something as a receiver, but I’m assuming they want to use this electronic device?” She picked up a small black box with several plugs on one side. Studying it with her magical senses, she found something she could lock onto with her spells. She wasn’t sure if what she was about to try would work, but she started weaving circles as Becca said something that sounded vaguely positive so she ignored it as she focused on her enchantment. It took a few moments longer than usual, but she was able to insert the receiver circles she needed to.

“Ok, I think it’ll work. Can you hook it up to something while I enchant the crystals?” Getting a nod from Becca, she picked up the first crystal once more and began weaving the light and vision magic into it.

As soon as she finished, Becca spoke up. “I have completed connecting the receiver. It seems it is receiving something, though I am unsure of what.”

Aurelia glanced over at the TV that had been hastily hung on the wall, wires and the box in question hanging under it and an unfocussed and inverted 360 degree picture of everything around the crystal in question showing on the TV. “Well, that’s better than I expected. That’s the hard part done - the rest is just tweaking it so it looks right.”

 

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