The Decameron 2.0

Day 5.10 Revenge - WILLOW SONG HardeeBurger

CHAPTER ONE - Yeah! Professor Hikari!

The nightmares were familiar, for they happened often. They tormented Gumi every time she slept.

"All I've ever wanted is to rid the world of Evil."
"You do more harm than good."
"I'm sorry. Please let me into Heaven."
"You? Never! You're a failure!"

"Gumi? Why are you crying?"
"Because I am broken."
"Do you believe in angels?"
"I do. I murdered one."

Waking life for Gumi was much better. She no longer had to deal with the grimy city, where everything she owned had been crammed into a living cubical. Although T.O.P.'s floating cybernetics lab was just an old marine research vessel, it was a home that Gumi loved.

Despite her obvious problem.

"Gumi?" Professor Hikari asked. "Are you awake?"

Gumi mumbled first, then hollered. "Go away!"

Professor Tatu Hikari, Chief Science Officer aboard the Crystal Leanne, stood well behind the deckchair where Gumi was sunning herself while she slept.

"Please wake up," he said, poking her a bit

"Leave me alone!"

Although not awake, Gumi punched the air with violent, lethal blows. Hikari knew better than to let one land. Once Gumi stopped trying to knock out his teeth, he spoke to her again.

"We need to check your bandages."

Gumi sat upright immediately. She scanned for enemies but found only sun and sea. And Professor Hikari.

"Let me look at your tattoo interfaces," he said, "to see how they're healing."

Gumi had on the briefest of bikinis. Much more of her was covered with gauze and yards of tape. The bandage on her right forearm was oozing, and Gumi almost punched Hikari on purpose when he pulled off the tape around it.

"Ow, Doc! That really hurts!"

Professor Hikari was not a medical doctor. His bedside manner sucked.

"You're still picking at your interfaces," he said as he touched the wound.

"Ouch! No I'm not."

"You have to stop. They won't come off, and they're getting infected."

"Seriously? I mean, look at me."

All of Gumi's fingers looked like sausages, each wrapped fat and white with gauze. Another dozen bandages dotted Gumi's body, at places where she had used her fingernails to gouge at her tattoos.

"I can't pick at anything," she said. "You've got me wrapped up like a mummy."

Hikari examined the thumb and index finger on Gumi's left hand. The wrappings were covered with the same ooze as the bandage on her right arm.

"Hmm," he said, disbelieving.

"I must be... ah, I must do it in my sleep."

"You're still hacked by the computer virus. We got it out of the ship, but we can't get it out of you."

Gumi looked away. She knew this was the truth. "I don't want to obliterate you," she said, sad and apologetic. "Not now anyway."

"Hmm," Hikari repeated, wanting to believe her.

"It's true! I don't want to obliterate anyone. And especially not T.O.P. either."

The owner of the Crystal Leanne called himself T.O.P. – an acronym for something that was not his name. He was as peculiar as Gumi, and harbored a fondness for her that few aboard ship could fathom. Always confident, always sure, they both lived for one purpose.