Aneka Jansen 6: The Lowest Depths of Shame Read Online Free PDF Page B

it was sleeveless, high-hipped, high-collared, and with a slightly matte quality which Aneka found appealing. A bolero jacket, also with a high collar and padded shoulders, made sure her breasts were on full display, and there were fingerless gloves in a dark red which matched the front panel of the jacket. There were also, however, heavy boots and real, opaque, hip-hugging trousers.
    ‘How long was I out?’ Aneka asked as she pulled the two-tone red-and-black jeans up her legs.
    ‘Twenty-six hours, seventeen minutes,’ Winter replied. ‘Why?’
    ‘These clothes are almost decent. I figured I’d need to have been unconscious for years before Ella put me in real clothes.’
    ‘Your boobs are still there for me to admire,’ Ella replied. ‘I’m happy. So, aside from “the same,” how do you feel?’
    ‘Well… It’s a little weird, actually. I can tell there are differences. My diagnostics were cleaner. Sharper, you know? It’s like I got a new graphics card. My in-vision displays are all… well, they’re kind of… new. It’s all a bit different, and I’ll have to get used to everything again, but I feel just like I did. Except maybe a bit more nimble. Cassandra’s quiet.’
    ‘She is communicating with me,’ Al replied to the implied question.
    ‘Ah, she’s talking to Al. He sounds clearer too. Did you boost the bandwidth between our computers, Winter?’
    ‘Actually, yes, and his processors are significantly more powerful.’
    ‘Speaking of that,’ Cassandra said, looking up, ‘do you think it’s time to show them the other thing?’
    ‘When Aneka and Al have acclimatised to their new environment,’ Winter replied.
    ‘What “other thing?”’ Aneka and Ella chorused.
    ‘ When Aneka and Al have acclimatised to their new environment,’ Winter repeated. Her grin was just a little mischievous when she said it, however.
    ~~~
    War’s ideas for new weapons were a little surprising, but they were proving effective. The barrels were ten millimetres across, allowing the two machine pistols, which were lighter and a little more compact than Bridget and Clara, to fire specialist ammunition, but Aneka was getting the feel for them with the standard three-millimetre needles. Given that the barrel was just a force-focussing mechanism, the size of the round was immaterial so long as it could fit the bore.
    And then there was the new targeting software. The recreation block had a firing range and Aneka was sweeping through it, locking targets and taking them down as they popped up. She had always had the option of sighting through the cameras mounted on her guns, but now it seemed as though there was a new trick in her arsenal. She had not quite figured out how she was managing to concentrate so well on three things at once, but she was tracking future victims with her eyes and current ones with her guns, and it all seemed absolutely seamless.
    ‘We’re running new combat software,’ Aneka said silently as she danced through the simulated landscape cutting down yet another pair of targets almost before they had locked in place.
    ‘Target tracking has been augmented,’ Al informed her. ‘I am now better able to assist in friend-or-foe identification. You’ll notice that your combat information display is more detailed, but your perception rate is sufficiently high that you should have no trouble taking in what you need.’
    A target indicator went red, indicating a friendly, and she skipped it, shifting her aim to the next one without a pause. A turn flicked her vision past where the observation room was located. War was there watching her handiwork in use, with Ella, Cassandra, and Winter watching Aneka. The two pistols spoke again as more targets appeared, and Aneka’s head turned after them to locate new aim points. Ammo was getting low; they would end the scenario soon.
    Three targets popped up almost simultaneously, the middle one showing a red circle. Aneka fired off two quick bursts which