"And there's no way that this can ever be traced back to me?" I ask nervously.
"Everything that happens here is confidential. No one outside of this room will know about it. You're not named on our records, and if you're paying in cash it can't be traced back to your account."
"I've got the money." I reply. "30,000, right?"
"30,000."
I hand over what constitutes years worth of earnings, but I know it's worth it, to survive. Two years ago, I was diagnosed with a rare and incurable condition that will eventually lead to a brain haemorrage within the next three or four years. I don't want to die like that, I'm only 25 years old.
I'm lead into a lab where an android body - my new body, I realise - is lying one of two surgical tables...the other must be for me.
"Is that what I'm gonna look like?" I ask.
"No, of course not. You're going to look exactly as you do now, completely indistinguishable. Let me explain. First, we put you to sleep, and transfer you into this body. Then, your original body is scanned, and that information allows the computer to recreate every detail on your new body."
I place my hand on the blank, featureless head of my new body...it feels cold...fake.
"Don't worry." says Dr Taylor. "It'll feel just like real human flesh by the time we're finished."
"How long will it take?" I ask.
"About two and a half hours. When would you like us to start?"
I take a deep breath. "Now, please. I'm ready."
Taylor nods. "OK...could you take your clothes off, please...and lie down on that table?" she asks.
I do as she asks, a little nervously. She takes my hand, and smiles. "It'll be alright, Vicki. Nothing can go wrong with this, I'll be here the whole time."
I smile. "Thanks. So...is this it?"
She nods. "I'll see you in a few hours, alright?"
I nod - and close my eyes, suddenly very sleepy as the anaesthetic begins to take effect...
--------------------------------------------------
"Vicki? Vicki, wake up..."
I struggle to open my eyes...and I see Dr Taylor smiling at me. My vision is completely clear...I'd have expected it to be a bit fuzzy...
If I were still human.
I sit up with a start, and Taylor takes hold of me. "Whoa, whoa, easy, Vicki."
My heart is pounding...well, whatever now functions as my heart. "Is it over?" I ask.
She nods. "Welcome to your new body."
I run my hands over it...everything's the same...I even have that little scar just above my knee...
"How do you feel?"
I...feel about the same. "OK." I reply. "Well...not that different at all, really." I take a deep breath. "But...I can smell things...more strongly? Clearer?"
Taylor nods. "Your senses have been heightened - hearing, vision, taste, smell, touch...it's all much stronger. Here." She takes my hand...and I can feel every little detail about it. I know exactly where the lines are, and exactly where the flesh is thickest and thinnest...I smile at her.
"So...is anything else different?" I ask.
"You're stronger now, far stronger than a human. You still need air, food, and water, but you can survive without it for longer than a human could. You be without air for a few weeks, without food and water for a few months. Otherwise, everything else is normal - except you're not going to get sick anymore. Your nails and hair still grow, your body temperature is that of a normal human...and you still age. Plus, you now have the intelligence and memory of a supercomputer."
I nod, trying to take this all in. "So, what happens now?"
"You can go. We're finished."
"What happens...to my original body?" I ask.
"We have it on life support next door...some people like to take a moment to say goodbye. Would you?"
I think for a moment. "Yes, please...would you come in with me?"
--------------------------------------------------
It's weird...watching yourself like this. It's kind of like being dead, but you're not. Or...maybe you are. Except...you're not. I stroke her hair...my hair...and I feel a bit guilty, almost as if I'm the one who killed her...me...like I'm a fake, just taking her place.
"It's weird, isn't it?" says Taylor. "You can't quite believe that you once lived in there..."
I nod, slowly. "I feel like a murderer...I killed her and replaced her."
"No, no, you didn't. You're her. I transferred you from there...to here." she replies, putting her hand on my shoulder. "Vicki...we can keep the body on life support for as long as you want."
"Will it hurt...her?"
Taylor shakes her head. "There's no-one there to be hurt."
"What will you do with her if you switch her off?"
"If you want to donate any organs, you can. If not, we'll just atomise the body."
I kneel down next to my body, and place a soft kiss on its lips. "Goodbye, Vicki." I whisper. "Alright...turn it off."
Dr Taylor flicks a few switches...and my old body dies, peacefully. Even so, I can't help a few tears, and Taylor holds me tightly while I cry for my own passing...
--------------------------------------------------
"If there's anything you need, please, call me. I know the next few days might be a little hard...but you will adjust."
"Thank you, Doctor...thank you so much."
"Call me Alison, please...and can I ask you a favour?"
"Anything."
"Please keep in touch. I'd like to know how you're doing."
I smile. "Do you always keep in touch with all your customers?"
"No...there are far too many. There are thousands of androids out there now, Vicki - far more than is generally known."
"So...why me in particular?"
"Because you remind me of me...when I was first transferred."
My eyes nearly pop out of my head. "You're an android!?!?"
"Yes...is that a problem?"
"N-no...I just didn't realise..."
"Good. That means that, hopefully, no-one will realise about you."
I smile. "I hope so. Thanks, Alison." I offer my hand, but she hugs me.
"Don't mention it. Take care, Vicki."
"You too."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------
My first step into the outside world almost overwhelms me - for a moment my new brain is flooded with more information than I've ever been used to, and it takes a moment for me to adjust, but when I do, I feel as though I'm finally able to see after having been blind all my life. I can hear conversations blocks away, zoom in on details going on right up the end of the street...it's amazing. I smile, and head for my car...oh, I can't wait to see my darling Susanna...
But...do I tell her what I've just done? She'd probably never find out if I don't...although she might get suspicious now that I'm not going to be dying within the next few years...but she is my girlfriend and we've always shared everything. I know she loves me...but can she love me knowing that I'm...not real?
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