Lights?

Voices?

So tired...

Here we go again.

Darkness.

***

​When I opened my eyes again, I found myself lying in the same room and bed as before. Outside it was day and I had absolutely no idea how much time passed while I was unconscious. I began to notice a little squeaking sound coming from my left side.

​Holy shit.

​Where my left arm used to be a sleek white cylindrical steel arm now lay. It had dull gray rounded shiny ball joints, with elaborate metal fingers each as long as a piano key. For a moment I couldn't breathe properly as I tried moving my new arm. It didn't move in a fringy or robotic way like I expected, but rather it moved fluidly, like how a fish would move through water. I tried wiggling my fingers and they obeyed, just like that. Both curling and curving my fingers, the hand did it all. I even tried a few complicated hand gestures such as the alien, which I couldn't even achieve with my old hand, and after several miserable attempts with my new hand, I gave up. With a sigh, I turned hand over as I lean back on the pillow and noticed here was a small black lens on my wrist, curious of what it was for, I tapped it once, then all of a sudden a blue light blast through the lens and hit me straight in the eye, the light was blinding but there was no heat. Scared that I had triggered some sort of self-destruct function, I tried to pull my new arm off. I failed, the thing was just glued to me, worst of all an unexpected pain shot up my shoulder, the part where the arm was connected.
"I wouldn't recommend trying to pull of your arm while it's still intact with your nerves..." A high pitch girlish voice came out of nowhere, followed by a yawn that was not my own.

"Where, where are you?"

I frantically looked around the room searching for moment. Aware of another being inside the room able to hear it yet unable to see added an extra set of nerves on me.

"Down here you dimwit!" the voice came again.

When I looked down, everything made perfect sense, yet all I could do was stare.

"You know staring is kind of rude right?"

Out from the lens was a holographic projection barely the size of an action figure, but the shape was unmistakably...

"Illyria." I realized I just blurted it out at the time, but I couldn't care less in that situation.

"Ha? Who's that?" the hologram figure protested with elbows arched, hands on her hips and a big grumpy expression on her face.

Her attitude and the way she spoke, was nowhere near how Illyria acted. The only thing this hologram had in common with the real Illyria, were those dashing twin blue ponytails, crystalline eyes, petit build, white uniform dress and that cute expression. 

"Then..." I began.

"It's also rude to stare you know?"

"Uh-huh..." I was completely dumb fooled by the sight and not knowing what to say, I decided to keep quiet and wait. Wait till the whole thing is over, and the batteries dry up, perhaps I would die sooner from awkwardness, who knew?

"Huh? What kind of response is that?" She replied, as she stared at me in a posture. With back leaned forward, hand under her jaw and knitted eyebrows; the way she looked at me was like how one would study a specimen. I couldn't help but laugh at how ridiculous it looked, and the figure stumbled back in surprise too, and I mean literally stumbled back. As I watch the figure get to her feet and straighten herself-up, I found tears in my eyes.

"What-what's so funny?" she exclaimed with tiny fist clenched at her side.
"Nothing really, you just remind me of someone." I said, trying to wiping the tears out of my eyes with my good hand.

"You're really starting to annoy me now, are you always like this?"

"I guess, to all holographic figures who just randomly pop out of my arm." I shrugged.

"...Fine." She said with her arms crossed. "Let's start with some proper introductions. I will go first." She cleared her voice and continued: "I am Rin, and from this day onward I am tasked to look after you, whether it's living, combat, education, dating tips..."

"Dating tips? Who installed that kind of useless function into you?"

"Ha!? Did you just say dating tips are useless? No wonder you are still single. Hmph~"

Nothing about the comment provoked me other than the fact that it was true.

That expression at the end of the sentence...

That face...

The truth...

Curses!

That moment I wanted nothing more than to uninstall her, and sue the company that made her on the grounds of trolling.

Whoever programed her...I have a bad feeling about it...

"Just shut up! Where is the off button?"

"Nope, there is no way I will go away unless I want to." She gave me one those troll faces that just made me want to reach my hand into the 2nd dimension and choke her.

That face...

I gave up, even as un-Illyria her personality was like, there was still no way I could have hurt her. So I eventually decided to calm down and just give in.

"Alright you got me." I sighed. "So what do you want?"

"Ehhh? You're giving in already? You're no fun." She yawned, as she shifted into a lying down position in midair and pretended she was sleeping.

Whoever designed her must be a sociopath or something...

"What do you mean? You're the one trolling me!"

"Fine, fine! You're so annoying! Can't you even be quiet for five seconds and let the lady take a proper nap."

Forget what I said earlier, this bitch ain't Illyria. I swear the moment I get cross dimensional powers, I will slap the coding out of her...

"Yeah and I hope you never wake up from it."

"Talking about S-A-L-T-Y!"

"How about G-T-H-"

The door burst open and Dr. Cherrylove steps inside.

"I see the two of you are getting along." She was in the same doctor's clothes as before, and she flashed me with one of her casual wide smiles.

"Mommy!" Rin exclaimed.

"Mommy?..." I almost coughed blood. Almost, I swear.

No, just, just no...

"Yes I designed her, though I've had her blue print personality around for quite a while now. As for the virtual model, well...after doing some background checks about you, I feel like this is the most appropriate."

There it was on the doctor's face again, that wide cheery grin.

Appropriate? More like cruel japes of gods...

"You are probably thinking why this is even appropriate, but that will be a question for another time. It's time for you to go."

"Go?"

"You been inside the hospital for almost a week now, you need to go out and get some fresh air." All of a sudden she slid over to my bed and whispered to me as if afraid someone would hear:

"P.S we could show you to your new dorm if you want to."

So another 3 days I was unconscious huh...

"Wait, the dorm? Right now?"

"Of course!" the way she said it reminded me of a ten year old girl hype on sugar, but I decide to let the comment pass.

"But am I even allowed to leave?"

"Of course! Just hold on," she said as she took out a tablet from her coat and set it in front of her. She tapped the screen once and it came to life, then she tapped something again, then she passed the tablet to me. The screen was orange when she passed it to me, and it had a bunch of tiny text beneath and scrolled down like...forever.

"Just press your finger there, and we are good to go!" she said pointing at the center. She just sounded so excited, it almost made the whole thing sound like an adventure, and for a moment it got me excited too. So without looking through the contents below, I pressed my thumb against the tablet. A moment later the screen turned green as two large words popped right out of the center:

"Verification complete." But before I could see any more words pop up, the doctor snatched the tablet from my hand like how an eagle would snatch up a helpless rabbit.

"Don't mind the details, I will take care of it."

I feel like I am missing something important...oh whatever.

I wasn't really the type of guy to read long blobs of text, so I decided to just go with it.

"I got you the uniform right here, want to give it a look?"

To be honest I wasn't really the uniform type of guy, but I would do anything to get rid of my hospital clothes for a change.

"Wait! You're going to change right here right now!?" Rin voice spoke up.

She was standing in an awkward
position with both hands covering her face, and for the remaining part of the face which she didn't cover was a shade of beat red.

"Doctor...I was wondering is there any way I could turn her off?" I asked sincerely.

"Alala?~ You got tired of her already? Well, I never designed an off switch in the start so..."

If I wanted to face palm that moment, I would probably crack my skull and end this torture for once and for all. But after all, the gods are cruel, and they will continue to extend my suffering as long as I live...

Curses.

Q: Would you like an AI like Rin on your phone?