When Sandra asked for a mirror, Delia grabbed into a shelf and pulled out a mirror from it. "Here you go. I modeled your appearance just like you asked. if you notice like hair thin lines across certain parts of your body such as the neck or where joints meet, that is because otherwise I would have to replace the skin each time maintenance is done and that would cost money. So it sort of makes it easier. It goes unnoticed to the human eye unless someone actually has a good eye for detail."

Then the delivery girl asked a question that made Delia chuckle: "You really watch to many movies. Military grade modifications are illegal for civilian use and Cygen has a policy to not alter the state of mind of clients, plus it is against the law to do so. She might feel a bit different at first however, she will get used to it. The only thing that she may have to watch out for is that she will possess a bit more strength than normal. If you have questions for her, why dont you ask her yourself?"

Sandra looked at herself in the mirror. It was exactly like she'd imagined it, her new, ideal self in the technicolor reality that was her life now. She smiled energetically and beamed at Delia, "It's amazing." she says, not quiet identifying her new body as herself yet, but entirely sure that after a week of getting used to it she would be 100% on top of being this new person.

It was kinda like being high. She wondered to herself if she would still be at all addicted or even capable of enjoying her favorite enemy, but gleefully thought that the less she had to deal with that kind of thing in the future the better, and having wifi in her head would probably more than make up for not being able to do drugs anymore. She waited for her card back and toyed with herself absently.

Hikaru laughed. It was a rather silly assumption but then again--

"--The only thing that she may have to watch out for is that she will possess a bit more strength than normal. If you have questions for her, why dont you ask her yourself?"

"As a matter of fact, I think I will." Hikaru walked towards the newly converted Cyborg and asked. "Ummm...you don't feel odd or anything right? There are no weird sensations permeating all over your body is there?"

Hikaru observed her as she waited for a reply. "So this is a full cyborg...Due to being below 18 meters high, her humanoid frame is rather stable, as her center of gravity isn't too far from the ground. Proportions are just right--" Hikaru glanced up and chuckled. From the woman's point of view, being inspected this thoroughly by an outsider must be annoying. "Too perfect actually. Skeleton's still human though, I wonder what kind of metal did they use in the other parts. Titanium seems plausible but, it isn't a perfect metal, not to mention the costs. Well, I guess with improved abilities to mine for titanium ore on the moon, its price has diminished significantly. Oh, and it seems her legs are much more advanced than mine."

Hikaru wondered about the components though. Turning over to the woman on the counter, Hikaru raised a question. "Excuse me? Can I just ask? Are all your parts mass-produced in this facility? Or do you import them elsewhere?" Hikaru remembers the parts she just delivered.

"--The amount that he's ordered are enough to make a full-flown cyborg body, complete with munitions and everything."

Her thoughts earlier weren't baseless. Their shop was operating for a long time and, so far, her boss hasn't been the type to tell a lie. He explicitly stated that armaments and munitions were part of the bundle but for what? "A-ah well, I just thought that, with your advanced facilities, you could've cut costs by having your manufacturing plant in this location as well." Hikaru glanced at the cyborg girl again.

"The next phase of human evolution huh?"

After processing the payment, Delia handed the card back to Sandra. "One more thing, most of the parts in your body including your skeleton are made of a lightweight titanium alloy. If you ever get mugged and someone stabs or shoots you. It will only result in skin damage, no parts should be damaged in such cases." Delia explained.

She then began unpacking the boxes revealing weapons and ammo in the first box. "Perfect. The guns for the cybernetic police with rubber bullets and tranquilizers. Cygen was given a contract to supply the cyborgs at the police department with non-lethal weaponry. The only thing is that the police must gain permission from Cygen to even be able to use them. Same will go for soldiers once we get that up and running, however it is more strict with them and unauthorized access to integrated weapons results in punishment through agonizing pain. Cygen is the only supplier of cybernetics in the city and the main supplier in the nation. Politicians aren't so worried about conditions and consequences as long as they get their supersoldiers. Luckily, Cygen would never allow such to be used against civilians in case a government is so malevolent to even consider taking arms against its own citizens. And what are they going to do against us anyways? Most cyborg employees are equipped with hardened skin that sort of acts like kevlar. We also offer it for civilians but it is expensive. Only downside is that you are more visibly cyborg. Look at me for instance, my skin shines and you can see where joints meet and that the facial skin is in two sections." Delia said.

The fact that she could say this so easily was because no one could really provide proof in case they were to tell anyone and secondly, Delia was a somewhat important person in Cygen, owning a branch and having a decision making position at HQ.

Delia listened to Hikaru's question and then answered: "Well I got a machine that builds the body and makes most of the parts. I just have to manually build in any parts that aren't produced here." Delia found it to be a shame that the girl was so dependent on her parents to decide whether she could become a full cyborg or not. Maybe I could do something to convince her parents. I will have her become a full body cyborg. Delia thought.

Sandra poked herself a couple times, practically sarcastic, being somewhat hurt by the way she said the last bit, "Nope, still feels relatively normal. And if this is the next step in human evolution I'm all for it." she says a bit defensively, "I've been waiting years for this." She crossed her arms over her chest a little awkwardly after taking her card from Delia, still not used to being the shape that she now was, "Just gotta get used to it. I'm still a person."

She then really had no reason to stick around, unless she wanted to keep talking to these two, and she wasn't sure she wanted to do that, between Hikaru's silent judging and Delia getting on with her business, which she couldn't begrudge, "If you'll excuse me I think I'll be leaving now." she says a bit quietly, still being rather shy about herself, the energy having gone into the previous outburst having taken all of the boldness she could muster for the day.

She turned carefully and started to make her way out, relearning how to walk every step.

"Well I got a machine that builds the body and makes most of the parts. I just have to manually build in any parts that aren't produced here."

"Manual assembly? Won't that typically cost more considering the fact that the process will take longer and quality control will become tighter?" Hikaru asked. She found it strange that Cygen offers such a cheap service considering mechanical processes and manufacturing and, as the woman pointed out, manual construction means they'll have to pay more for labor and maintenance.

She glanced at the newly converted Cyborg, who had just started to leave the shop. "Most likely...she got annoyed by my constant ramblings. Terribly sorry!" Hikaru issued an apology in her head. As with some of her friends, it would seem none would last her for long.

"Well, if all your components are standardized like these--" Hikaru picks up one inventory piece from her delivery. It was a 15 gauge stainless steel pipe, probably to be used as part of maintenance service to the factory's pipelines. "A fully automated, injection molding process can produce the same kind, with the same properties by the hundred per minute. Still, for you guys to make them on the spot--" Hikaru felt her phone vibrating. It was her boss, telling her to head back.

"A-ah! S-so sorry for rambling on! I'll be taking my leave now!" Hikaru ran out after collecting her payment. Hopping on her transporter, she rode out to return to her place of work. Along the way, she still kept thinking. The words the new cyborg let slip resonated in her mind.

"--still feels relatively normal. And if this is the next step in human evolution I'm all for it."

"Evolution...In the first place, how can we even say that a species has "evolved"? Isn't that a word we use to describe things who have transcended their physical limitations and adapted into the changing society, onwards to a higher plane of existence? But, watching all these people walk by--it seems that nothing's changed at all." Hikaru passed into the more economic side of the city, where business was bustling and everyone's trying to get somewhere at some point. "No one's even trying to make new friends here. They say we're advanced but, it's practically the same Anno Domini where people only care about themselves---Arrgghhh!!! I'm starting to think like dad--Whoah!" Hikaru was surprised as a car suddenly careened dangerously to her side, forcing her off the road and knocking her down. The people inside stopped to look at her. They were a bunch of teenage boys.

"Excuse me but, do you require any assistance?" Hikaru thought she heard one of them speak but turns out, it was just an assisting robot. "No, I'm fine." Hikaru shook her head and petted the machine, if only for the reason that it was shaped like a dog.

"Hey, are you crazy? Talking to a machine--" One of the boys kicked the robot down, much to Hikaru's anger.

"What was that for?!" Hikaru shouted angrily. The boy checked her from head to toe and noticed her mechanical leg.

"Tch, useless machines. I'm off!" They boys sped away, leaving Hikaru in the dust. The passerby only shot them a glance but, none even bothered to help. "No one even bothered helping. Even as humans, they're no different than the machines--" Hikaru cut herself off at that. She turned to the damaged assisting robot. After lifting up her transporter, she carried the machine and placed it on the cargo hold. "Well, at least this little guy offered to help..." Determined to fix him, she started the transporter and went on her way.

"Right...nothing's changed at all..."

Delia got a call on her phone. It was from corporate. "Turn on the radio to 109.1, they are talking about the company." The person said. Delia did so. "...they have gained a near monopoly over casual cybernetics in the country. Could this be dangerous? Could it lead to the loss of quality and innovation in the field? He with me we have a representative speaker from Cygen. Good to have you here. Well, do you intend to keep quality and innovation to a high level?"

"Yes we do. One of our main shareholders is a leading innovator herself and since she has a lot of say in the company, she has high expectations of the company. We continue to work on improving quality, offering innovation and find ways to cut the prices while maintaining great conditions for our employees. Since mass production cuts costs, most of our parts are mass produced. however branches not far from corporate still maintain their own assembly lines to increase customization possibilities. Our standard mass produced bodies are priced at 5000 Arunian pounds. However as an example, the bodies at our Arun city branch are about 1000 Arunian pounds more expensive due to higher customizable bodies and higher quality as every part is custom made. The Arun city branch also makes a higher amount of income than the average branch. It has sold ten bodies this month already. Most branches sell about 12 bodies a month while that in Arun city normally sells two dozen. Our highest seller is in Mira city at an average of 40 bodies a month, however they only sell the mass produced standard with only appearance customization. So we intend to have all branches to offer a choice between a cost effective standard and a customizable body."

"Is it true that you turn memories in to data and put them into an artificial brain?"

"No. Depending on the circumstances, we will never replace brains as brains sustain consciousness and we currently do not view artificial brains as safe. We leave most of brains intact while only connecting them to hardware. In most cases only a small part of the brain can be removed without affecting the personality or well-being of the client. And if a part is removed then it is most commonly the part responsible for motor abilities as the body needs a different kind of input to function and signal converters can waste space and reaction time. By standard however, we leave the entire brain intact unless instructed otherwise by the client."

"What if malfunctions occur?"

"We take safety precautions to ensure that if malfunctions happen, an emergency signal is sent out to the nearest technician. If it is an error regarding the central processing unit or the control unit, then there are safety functions to avoid painful sensations."

"Last question: Do you alter memories?"

"You should be aware of the fact that altering memories is illegal. The only time that it can be legal is if it is to suppress or eliminate severely traumatizing experiences such as childhood rape or triggers of PTSD. All our clients aren't altered in memory. We need to keep an experience that is as human as possible. Things like mind control or mind alteration are absolutely against our policies and if an employee is found guilty of these, we will personally bring this to attention with the officials and ensure that the employee will get prison time. We do not need mad scientists in our company."

"I thank you for the interview. If you have interest in Cygen, then visit their website or a local branch."

Delia turned the radio back off. "He executed that surprisingly well." She said to the person on the phone. The person on the other side said: "Yeah, he has had a lot of practice and is one of our legal advisers. He is also one of the few employees that do not have any implants. We need to be a company that people feel safe with. Keep up the innovation and refrain from questionable practices Miss Indrige." "No worries. We can change the world by having a good reputation. I will talk to you later." Delia said and hung up.

It was close to her usual early closing time. While being open every day except for public holidays, the shop was only open from eight to one. After shutting everything off, Delia changed into more casual clothes (a camisole and a short skirt) and then left the shop. She decided to go into a bar down the road.

Arriving at her home later in the evening, Hikaru set to work repairing the small assistance bot she picked up on the street. The warranty was no longer valid and, judging from the wear on the parts, it must have been pretty old. Its identification codes are also off, meaning that it was a stray bot. Hikaru changed into more casual attire and set herself to work.

"Okay...first off, the main frame needs to be examined--" Hikaru had made it a habit to mutter the steps to herself as she worked, to ensure she remembers everything. Having taken the exoskeleton apart, she checked the circuitry to make sure everything was working properly.

"Components are okay. LEDs seems shorted out. No problems, I have some spares..." Hikaru took out replacement LEDs but found their connection to be loose. She soldered the pieces with tin to secure them. Old methods but, their effectiveness hasn't decreased at all. A few minutes later and her eyes were already red from the fumes from the soldering iron. She washed them on the sink and took a break for a while as she flipped on the news. It seems Cygen was being featured so she turned up the channel.

"--No. Depending on the circumstances, we will never replace brains as brains sustain consciousness and we currently do not view artificial brains as safe. We leave most of brains intact while only connecting them to hardware. In most cases only a small part of the brain can be removed without affecting the personality or well-being of the client. And if a part is removed then it is most commonly the part responsible for motor abilities as the body needs a different kind of input to function and signal converters can waste space and reaction time. By standard however, we leave the entire brain intact unless instructed otherwise by the client."

"Technically...the signal converters won't slow down the reaction time but, when used in its standard setting, the frequencies that will suddenly enter the brain might be too foreign for the nervous system to deal with, causing the user some degree of pain. It is for these reason that the reaction time is hampered...it's to act as filters. Well, it's not like they'll be revealing this to the general public. It might cause more malfunctions than benefits as it is now." Hikaru resumed work on the small machine. Another interesting question came up later as she was replacing the parts with chromium-infused stainless steel rods.

"Last question: Do you alter memories?"

"You should be aware of the fact that altering memories is illegal. The only time that it can be legal is if it is to suppress or eliminate severely traumatizing experiences such as childhood rape or triggers of PTSD. All our clients aren't altered in memory. We need to keep an experience that is as human as possible. Things like mind control or mind alteration are absolutely against our policies and if an employee is found guilty of these, we will personally bring this to attention with the officials and ensure that the employee will get prison time. We do not need mad scientists in our company."

"He...has a point. But, suppressing painful memories can be risky. On the off-chance the incident happens again, the body would've have lost all prior knowledge to deal with the encounter. Plus, some people might go to great lengths once their sense of pain is numbed down. Being unable to feel anything...means you cannot gain anything. In that case, it might be too difficult to feel that you're alive..." Hikaru finished repairing the robot. It jumped up and down happily like a dog, making her feel a bit happy.

"However, can machines really be called alive? Do they even fall under the concept of a living being? Urgh...I've been reading too much of the books on morality that dad instructed me to. I think I'll get some fresh air." Hikaru wandered outside, reasoning that it isn't really that late yet.