"She's made of steel." Jill said quietly as Tandy finished the final stitches.

"She's had to be." Tandy said softly. "This wasn't easy for me though."

"I know. You've grown attached to her, just as I have. She was not quite cold, but not warm either. Protective is a better description. When you were brought in, she nearly lost her marbles." Jill said quietly.

"How did she keep it together?"

"Willpower. Some hugs from me and Danica, but over all, her mind was completely on you. If I didn't force her to eat and sleep, she would have lost it." Jill sighed.

"Danica?"

"Another like me. Brutalized. Abused. Aya used a crowbar and turned him into mush. She rebuilt Danica much the same way as she did me. We're only waiting on the upgrades. Will they work?" Jill asked.

"With her willpower, and drive, yes. Without, still a yes, but with more uncertainty. I'm not as skilled as she is, though it's hard to tell since I was the one who taught her everything. This is something completely new. Full skull replacement to ensure she received no blunt force damage." Tandy grunted a bit. "Also, look at these here. Screw ports. It looks like it's meant to meet up to something."

"She didn't tell you?" Jill asked. Tandy frowned.

"What did she hide from me?"

"Computer, access full frame model A upgrade schematic." Tandy's eyes narrowed as Jill unlocked the schematic that Aya had worked on for a while.

"That little devil. She can't sit back and watch others go into danger, can she?"

 

* * *

 

Middle of April, 2015

"Computer, verify the readings." Tandy looked at the readouts. "Scan the subject. Verify inflammation, and sensory inputs."

"Subject has healed ninety nine percent.  Inflammation is minimal.  Safe to bring out of medically induced stasis." Tandy frowned.

"Computer, scan subject within the vat."

"Subject within the vat has damage to fifty percent of her body, along with a twenty percent reduction in brain capacity. Damage is bypassed using .... unknown. Subject's brain capacity does not impair cognitive functions due to the damaged portion being some memory storage, and dormant unused portions. Subject is stable enough to remain awake, but it is not recommended to remove from life support vat. It is still uncertain whether or not the brain can handle taking on bodily functions." Tandy thought for a moment.

'Unknown? Baby, what are you hiding from me?'  Tandy paused to consider, but after a few seconds, her mind refused to process other thoughts, so she pushed it aside.

"Is it recommended to bring patient Aya out of medically induced stasis?" Tandy asked quietly.

"It is ahead of schedule. It is recommended to keep her within stasis for at least another week at a minimum. This anomaly shall be recorded. It is not considered normal SOP." Tandy let out a slow breath.

"Computer, continue to monitor the subject, and once it is verified that she hasn't bypassed the computer's controls in order to wake up early, inform me of the results. I will be angry if she's bypassed safety protocols in order to wake up faster." Tandy said with narrowed eyes.

"That information is on file. The boss left it in your hands to make the call, doctor."

The computer continued to monitor Aya's condition. With the readings, and information she was able to acquire, Tandy realized that Aya did not plan to wake up early.

She somehow was able to recover and heal at a pace Tandy herself had not heard of.

 

* * *

 

"Any change in her condition?" Tandy looked at the monitor and read the reports.

"One hundred percent. Doctor. Inform Jill. Protocols on file state that if there are extreme anomalies, the doctor must call Jill, and have her ascertain the problems, and respond accordingly." The computer stated.

"Respond?"

"Diagnostic tools. Verify whether onboard tools are functioning. You need hands to verify that." Tandy pondered the situation, and nodded slowly. She could still move within the gel, but her body wasn't completely under her control.

"Computer, call Jill. I have need of her assistance."

 

* * *

 

"Aya thought you might not call me." Jill said after she heard that the system had determined Aya was fine to wake up the day before.

"I couldn't be sure the system wasn't reprogrammed to wake her up too early! I didn't think that her system needed re-calibration!" Tandy said angrily.

"It doesn't need re-calibration. I'll prove it to you. Computer, pull up my last test results, and all successive scans. Set out for the doctor to see. Highlight any changes to the readings over that period of time." Jill said and waited.

"Scans uploaded to her monitor." Tandy looked through the readings.

"All look good." Tandy said.

"Computer, scan my current condition. Use the parameters you used to scan Aya." Screens were set up side by side. "Are there any changes to the data?"

"Minimal. Mostly due to time, and overall healing of the body by its own ability." Tandy said.

"There aren't two sets of scanning devices, one for her, and one for me. Computer, are there any protocols for if Aya heals early?" She asked.

"Negative. It is unexpected."

"Computer, what is Tandy's clearance level?"

"Complete. The same as Aya's." Jill looked at Tandy with a side look.

"Computer, did Aya make any alterations to your program in order to wake up early?" She forgot to ask about that 'unknown' part for the moment.

"Negative. The timeline expected is four weeks minimum." Tandy took a moment after the computer's response.

"Computer, re-scan. Is she ready to wake up?" Tandy asked carefully.

"Yes."

"Computer, prepare for wake up procedures. Have pain medication ready to inject. Have stasis medication ready to put her back out, just in case there is a fault somewhere." Tandy said and let out a slow deep breath, and though it could be heard, that showed the level of programming that Aya made in order to make Tandy's life seem real while contained within the vat. She could not breathe air, only the oxygenated nutrient solution.

"Stasis medication ready. Pain medication ready." To their ears, even the computer sounded tense.

"Begin wake up procedures, and bring her out slowly."

 

* * *

 

"Only three weeks." Aya said softly. "Well ahead of schedule. Computer, any indication of why?"

"Negative. Natural healing is the only explanation." Aya thought for a moment.

"Agreed." She looked at Tandy. "That must have been hard."

"It was. I really don't want to go through that again." She said, and her voice sounded quite upset.

"I understand, however, it's time for the additional upgrades, Tandy. The chips need to be installed. I need you now." She could see how unsteady Tandy felt, and walked up to the vat. She laid her forehead on the glass.

"Steady yourself, and help me to evolve."