Chapter 41: How you play the game. (Part 2)

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Aria Friend:

"For our victory as Champions of Oceania, cheers!" I led the toast around the table as we all raised a glass and met in the middle. We sat in the circular booth of a rather posh restaurant that overlooked the river that crossed the city. Erin sat to my left and beside her was Endi followed by Maggie.

"Should I really be here?" Endi laughed as she participated in the cheers.

"Of course!" Maggie replied with a wide grin. "I took your place because of your health. It's only right that you should be here as well."

"Thanks," Endi smiled, glad for the company. She was still very weak compared to usual and though she could move around for her day to day, doing any strenuous exercise was a straight no.

"Thanks for booking this place Maggie," I said as I put my glass back down. "It's probably the fanciest restaurant I've ever been in."

"Don't worry about it and the bill is all on me," she grinned. "After all I wouldn't even be able to leave the house without what your brother helped achieve." She gestured to the metallic structure that supported her body. A prototype robotic support system that used the virtual body helm to control it. On top Maggie's head a smaller and sleeker version of the device pressed down and connected to the rest of the exoskeleton.

"How has that been going?" Erin asked.

"Great!" Maggie replied enthusiastically. "It's a bit awkward sometimes but I can move around pretty well. I won't be doing flips anytime soon but with this, I can still move my fingers." The exoskeleton whirred softly as Maggie moved her hands. Travelling down her arms and on top her fingers small motors assisted her movements where her muscles had already begun to fail. "It's great for quality of life."

"But what about inside?" I hesitated to ask.

"Oh well," Maggie quietened. "That's something a lot of people are still working on. Let's not get bogged down on it and just celebrate." She smiled, strong despite the reality boring down on her. Though the VBH and exoskeleton could assist her movements on the outside, on the inside her muscles were losing strength and when her heart became too weak, that would be her end. Ardy had already told us what happened to Maggie in the world they experienced. This dinner wasn't just to celebrate. We had gotten to know Maggie quite well the past few weeks. None of us wanted her to die, even if that meant revealing some secrets.

"Maggie's right," I pulled back the enthusiasm from before. "I've never had a steak that costs $100 before. Might as well try it tonight right?"

"Just save room for dessert," Maggie smiled. "This place has some amazing stuff."

We sat facing the glass window that filled the entire wall with a brilliant view of the river. The entire restaurant was decorated with fine adornments of flowers and art, meshing the wooden furniture well with the carpets and hanging curtains. For the first time in a long while, I had even dressed up with the others, wearing party dresses and jewellery I'd usually leave alone.

"Excuse me," a waiter in a fine black tail coat bowed lightly greeting us. He held a tray of drinks. "We are celebrating our 20th year of service. Please join us in toasting the occasion tonight.

"Of course," Maggie welcomed the waiter to place the drinks on the table. They looked delicious with bits of fruit floating inside. I looked to what was being served at the other tables and noted they were getting champagne instead. Maggie and I were underage after all, but not by much.

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