As the glowing pink doorway formed in front of him, Turing glanced over at Uncanny Valley, who stared straight ahead, an excited smile on her face. In front of them, Doorman had his hand on the doorknob, the door from the New York United Heroez' penthouse suite partway open. Turing had been in America for close to a month now, spending almost every day traveling the country with Uncanny Valley to collect readings, both from the locations through which the Ox had traveled and from other areas of the country which could serve as control samples. To date, they had amassed several terabytes of raw data, which they had begun to compile into a broader picture by means of several programs that Max had written for the purpose. Over the month, a few of the drones in the case hovering by Turing's feet had developed hardware problems and required repairs, setting them back a total of two days in their plans as they collected the correct replacement parts, tested, and reprogramed.

Not that Turing or Uncanny Valley had complained about extending their project longer than the expected duration.

"Good luck!" Doorman told them, pulling the door all the way open. "If there is anything you need, do not hesitate to call."

"Thank you," Turing responded, nodding.

"We will contact you once we are ready to return!" Uncanny Valley added before turning to Turing, her mouth shifting into a smile. "It has been so long since I visited St. Louis!" she enthused. "It's such a fun city! And I think you will enjoy meeting the Cane Trips."

He furrowed his brows in confusion. "The who?"

"The triplets."

Turing opened his mouth to request clarification, but before he could speak, Uncanny Valley had already stepped through the portal, leaving him to follow in her wake, the hovering case trailing after him. No sooner had he crossed the threshold than the glowing doorway closed behind him and a high-pitched screech assaulted his aural receptors.

"Aeon!" a girl squealed, clutching Uncanny Valley in a tight hug and bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. Three girls, all with similar features but different hair, clustered around Uncanny Valley, embracing and giggling. Uncanny Valley grinned brightly, her arms wrapped around two of the triples. Turing shuffled backward to place his back against the door and ran through the checklist for his drones for the seventeenth time that day.

"God, I can't believe how long it's been since we saw you!" The blonde put her hands on Uncanny Valley's shoulders, holding her out at arm's length and examining her carefully. She grinned. "You look – well – the same as always, I guess!"

The redhead hummed, tapping her chin. "Jess's birthday party, right?"

"No." The brunette shook her head. "If you recall, two days later was the big meeting in Washington, when Victory decided not to send all the United Heroez to Paris."

"What, you mean when we saw them on the other side of the Hall?" scoffed the blonde, giving the brunette an annoyed look. "That totally shouldn't count, Sandy."

"Oh, I agree," Uncanny Valley chimed in, giggling. "At the meeting there was no time to talk or anything. The party was so much more fun!"

"So how was Paris?" demanded the redhead, fixing Uncanny Valley with an intense look. "We've seen your mom's reports, but there's something… missing when you just read about it."

Uncanny Valley shrugged. "It was… almost overwhelming," she began, pursing her lips. "You remember when the Ringmaster teamed up with Techno-Pirate and nearly sank Staten Island into the Hudson?" The redhead nodded slowly, her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. "It was even worse than that. The Tarasque threw Mom around like it was nothing."

Sandy's eyes bulged out in shock. "It did that to Majestia?" she yelped, her mouth hanging open. "I mean, the Ox did that to us… but I–I didn't even think that was possible! Not with Majestia, at least!"

Uncanny Valley nodded seriously. "It is absolutely possible. We spent six weeks in Africa because we lost the first time, and Turing and his dad had to keep the city safe almost by themselves until we could return and defeat the Tarasque."

"'Turing'?" repeated the blonde, confused. Uncanny Valley nodded toward the Turing, who still stood rooted in place by the door. All three girls turned as one to look at him, their eyes widening in surprise. Turing stared back at them, and past them at Uncanny Valley. Suddenly, before Turing could react, the triplets swarmed around him. The blonde gasped, looking back and forth between Turing and Uncanny Valley. "He's just like you!" she squealed, letting out a shrill giggle. "That's totally amazing! I didn't know there were any more like you!"

"There are very few–" Turing began, before being cut off.

Sandy poked Turing's shoulders and head a couple times before rapping on his collar. "Fascinating…" she mused, cocking her head and staring into his eyes. "I can tell you're an android, of course, but with just enough of the human features to pass at a distance."

Turing gave Uncanny Valley a helpless look. "Thank you?"

Uncanny Valley shrugged, stifling a laugh.

"He still looks pretty lifelike," the redhead objected, arching an eyebrow at Sandy. "Though not as much as you," she added, glancing over at Uncanny Valley.

"So where did you come from?" demanded the blonde, staring intently at Turing.

"I was created in Paris, to assist the Heroes of Paris," Turing explained promptly. "Since May I have been in New York City, working with Uncanny Valley to analyze the–"

"Yeah, yeah," the blonde interrupted him, waving a hand dismissively. "Daddy already told us–"

"Lexie–" Uncanny Valley interjected, frowning.

Sandy cut her off. "Hang on… so you've been in New York for a month with Aeon?"

"'Unc–'" Turing started to correct her before Lexie gasped.

"You never told me you had a boyfriend!" Lexie screeched, shaking Uncanny Valley by the shoulder and grinning ecstatically. "Why did you never tell me you have a boyfriend!?"

Uncanny Valley cocked her head to one side. "But he's not–"

"So that's what Jess meant!" the redhead observed, shaking her head and laughing. "Now it all makes so much sense!"

"Oh, you're just so cute together!" Lexie giggled, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet and pushing Uncanny Valley over to stand near Turing.

"A boyfriend," mused Sandy, furrowing her brows in thought and examining Turing carefully. "That's incredible! I mean, I can see the connection, but that raises so many other–"

"How romantic!" squealed Lexie.

The redhead leaned in intently. "So have you gone on any dates?"

"Fern–" Uncanny Valley began.

"Date?" asked Turing simultaneously.

"Are your parts modular?" asked Sandy.

"Wait, seriously?" demanded Fern, frowning. "You have to take her on a date! It's, like, a requirement!"

"But–"

Lexie nodded firmly. "I'll totally help you plan–"

"Park–"

"Dinner–"

"What's your processing power?"

Fern scoffed. "Lex, they don't eat! Why would they go out for dinner?"

Lexie blinked. "Wait – really?"

Turing shook his head, looking at Uncanny Valley for help.

"Oh, fine," Lexie continued. "So no dinner. But a moonlit stroll–"

"They could ride to the top of the arch…"

"They could fly up there!"

"So how anatomically correct are you?" asked Sandy, almost shouting over her sisters.

"What!?" Uncanny Valley screeched, her eyes bulging out.

Fern blinked and shook her head, a shiver running down her back. "That… that was a little uncalled for, sis," she chided Sandy, giving her a look.

"Yeah…" Lexie agreed with a humph.

"And you were any better?" Uncanny Valley retorted, folding her arms and frowning at both Fern and Lexie.

Lexie flushed. "I just–"

"Turing is my friend," Uncanny Valley informed her, an edge to her voice. "That is the correct definition for our current relationship."

"Honestly, I do not know if there is any other term that could apply to our relationship – present or future," Turing added.

"I'm sorry," Fern apologized. "I guess I just… got carried away."

"Apology accepted," Uncanny Valley answered.

Fern arched an eyebrow meaningfully at Lexie and Sandy. "Well?"

Sandy looked down at the floor. "I'm sorry also," she began. "I got carried away."

Lexie sighed heavily, her lips turning down in a pout. "Fine. But you really are so cute together."

"Lex," Fern warned her, though one corner of her mouth curved up in a ghost of a smile.

"You'd make such adorable babies!"

Sandy snorted. "Where? In a lab?"

"Sandy!"

Turing, Uncanny Valley, and the three Agents spread out around the churned-up field where the Agents had first encountered the Ox. In advance of their visit, the local police had cordoned off the area and removed all of the visitors that had been in the park, giving them clear access. And yet, Turing wondered how much specific evidence they might be able to find here, beyond the minimum of environmental readings. Over the months since the battle, so much of it had changed; in seventeen different spots, Turing could see potential evidence that may have been compromised. That any evidence might still remain was a miracle in itself. Immediately upon arrival at the site, Turing had deployed his drones to collect as much evidence as they could find. As the drones swarmed around overhead, Turing whirred pensively, running through the data and collating it as he went. Uncanny Valley hovered above the field with her arms outstretched, thirty meters away, rotating slowly as she compiled a topographical scan of the field. The hoofprints in the dirt had long since been refilled, the damaged vehicles removed. A pavilion that had been crushed had already been replaced. And yet, the signs of the battle still remained in the trees and bushes that had been uprooted or broken off, in the broad patches of ground that had yet to regrow.

Beside him, Agent Blue folded her arms, glancing down into the now-empty case resting on the ground beside Turing. "And you designed these drones yourself?" she asked.

He shook his head. "Pegasus designed them, though I have adapted them somewhat over the course of the last month to more optimally fit the current mission parameters. I did design and construct the hovering case, however."

"Huh." She cocked her head, turning to study him closely. "An android capable of designing technology of your own…"

Agent Red shook her head. "I'm glad you're on our side – both of you," she amended, jerking her head toward Uncanny Valley.

"Of course we are," Turing replied. "Why would we not be?"

"I mean, you've seen movies, right?" asked Agent Red rhetorically.

With a crack of thunder, Agent Yellow appeared beside them, an armful of sample cases in tow. "I got everything you wanted – I think," she called, dropping the samples at Turing's feet. "Soil samples, grass samples, bark samples, air samples…" She groaned, stifling a yawn. "I hope it's enough."

Turning nodded as Uncanny Valley descended back to land beside him, her arms dropping to her sides as she touched down. "Thank you," Turing told Agent Yellow. "I am sure this will suffice."

"Scan complete," Uncanny Valley reported cheerily. "As long as Lexie labeled the samples properly, we will be able to tell how the direct exposure affected the flora."

"Yeah, yeah, I labeled them just like you told me," Agent Yellow grumbled, the eyeroll almost audible.

Turing placed one hand on the first sample case and deactivated his photoreceptors, focusing his attention on the sample case itself. He could vaguely hear the conversation around him, Uncanny Valley's voice standing out above those of the Agents. After a moment, he reactivated his eyes and stood up, nodding pensively. "We will have to test more thoroughly," he began, "but preliminary analysis indicates an elevated level of the poison in the soil where the Ox stood and breathed, as well as in the plants growing within it."

Agent Blue hummed. "Any idea what that means long-term?"

Uncanny Valley furrowed her brows for a moment but shook her head. "We probably shouldn't speculate without more data."