Aftermarket Lover (SDS Robots) Read Online Free PDF Page A

how I lived before.”
    “You mean—”
    “My former owner,” Lin said.
    The word owner now left a bad taste in Ash’s mouth. He may have bought Lin this afternoon but he hadn’t felt like he “owned” Lin for a single moment, and never would. “What was he like?”
    Ash felt Lin tense, and he stroked Lin’s back until he relaxed again. “T.E. Schuman was a sadist.”
    “ T.E. Schuman? The famous A.I. engineer?” Ash was surprised.
    “Yes. I was the first hybrid he ever owned. He ordered me made without a penis and testicles because he wanted his own pleasure to be the only focus. He used to say things to me to provoke my human side,” Lin said. “He was fascinated to see a robot showing emotions that hadn’t been programmed into it.”
    He took a deep breath, then continued: “He would be nice to me and then he’d be vicious, just to see how I would react. He’d find out what I hated and then do it to me. He’s brilliant. He reprogrammed the key with his own commands. He would turn my pain receptors up and then beat me. He—”
    Ash pulled Lin tighter, holding Lin’s head close to his chest. He couldn’t stand to hear any more. “I’m sorry. You’ll never have to go through that again. No one deserves treatment like that. Not a human or a robot.”
    H is cheek nestled against Lin’s head. For a moment Ash thought he smelled Lin’s scalp. It was a human smell. Was this part of Lin becoming human?
    Lin ’s breathing evened and slowed, and Ash finally relaxed as well.
    He held Lin until Lin fell asleep, but Ash stayed awake long after that, thinking about things.
     
    ****
     
    Jake’s face came up on the screen. “What’s up? Hey, no refunds. I told you that, right?”
    “I don’t want a refund. I want you to find out something for me.”
    “What?”
    “The experimental treatment,” Ash said. “I want Lin to be assessed for it.”
    Jake whistled. “Heh. Sounds like a certain robot turned out to be a keeper. He that good?”
    “Just find out for me,” Ash said, ignoring him.
    Ash also did research on his own and discovered that of the three medical research doctors who founded the experimental treatment, one was a robosurgeon who grew parts using the hybrid’s own cells and who had performed numerous successful transplants.
    He called the robosurgeon’s office and talked to them. As soon as he had the information he needed, it was time to ask Lin what he wanted to do.
    Lin was astonished that Ash had researched all of this for him. “The important thing is—what do you want? Do you want to do this?” Ash asked.
    “I would have a normal human penis and testicles grown from my own cells, and a working digestion and elimination system. So I would be fully human?”
    “As soon as your body shed s the last of the chips inside you and incorporates the aftermarket parts, yes,” Ash said.
    “If I don’t do it,” Lin said slowly, “my body will continue to have human urges but without the parts to do anything about it.” He looked at Ash. “How much will it cost?”
    “Don’t worry about that,” Ash said. “By the way—you’ll only live a typical human lifespan if you do this. You’re not going to last forever like you could as a robot.”
    Lin nodded. “I’m not a full robot though. I’m becoming human and there’s no turning back. I would rather live as a human anyway.” His eyes shone and his face was alive with hope. “Yes. Let’s do it.”
     
    ****
     
    After Lin’s cells were sent to the lab, he and Ash spoke to the robosurgeon’s former patients by U-net. All of them looked happy and healthy and were living normal human lives. One, a young woman who had been an SDS hybrid, had even gotten pregnant with her new husband.
    “It works,” Lin said, his voice full of wonder. He and Ash were sitting in their favorite spot on the plateau, watching the suns set over the flatlands. Tiny jumped around, running between them, before finally settling in Lin’s lap.
    Lin