Disclaimer: I don't own X-Er, Spider-Man. Yep! That's what I was going to say.
Trigger: Get the tissues ready!
Warning: There is a mention made of the abuse of an intoxicating substance in this chapter. If that makes you uncomfortable, feel free to skip the middle of this chapter.
Navigating The Curve
By Juliette Lyst
You and I Were Meant To Fly
ECHO's Lab
How long had it been now since he'd started working? He wasn't sure. Were he to be a betting man, ECHO could have still easily lost all his money. Most of the time, he lost track of time while engrossed in projects. However, his attention always wavered to that lone clock near his main console. He would remember, note the time and keep going. Losing sleep was normal for him. He had machines that would remind him when he had to sleep, when he needed his medication and when he should sit down and eat. Tonight, everything had changed. It was very different. He'd brusquely told HEA to dump his calendar until the next week, not the least bit concerned about his paying clientele.
Any questions that the small bot might have voiced were completely ignored.
It was so unlike the man. If anything, ECHO took pride in his work and hammering out projects ahead of time. Making money from his creations gave him joy, as it was in a way validating what Octavius had ignored all those years ago. ECHO wasn't that strange, just misunderstood. His social awkwardness was not of his own design. He just tended to prefer the company of machinery to people and nothing was wrong with that.
The tall man tended to see his aversion to human contact as a catalyst for his mechanical genius. Had he not been so comforted by solitude, he never would have had time to dream up all of the things he built in his lab. He worked best without the company of others, only using HEA if there was an emergency.
Overnight, his world had shifted. Now, he was busily working in his lab, but for once he wasn't alone. Ashley lay on a slab next to him, hooked into the main power supply. Her green orbs were focused on the ceiling overhead. It was a sad sight, truly. Echo felt an indescribable pain in his chest as he watched her lie motionless on the slab. He knew that she wasn't asleep. Due to her current energy supply, Ashley didn't need to power down at night to charge. However, she remained so still and silent. Pausing a moment on part of the design he was working on; Echo rolled his chair over to her and lifted her hand.
Seeing those green eyes move to him, he swallowed hard. He lifted her hand to his lips, planting a kiss on them. While she didn't pull away, he felt her squeeze his hand slightly. Was it in reassurance? There was no way to tell with her. He wasn't sure what to say. Ever since he'd had to bring out a pad for her to write on, Ashley had become almost completely uncommunicative. Even though she was a machine, it was proving difficult for her to adapt to the sudden change. He knew that the previous few days, she'd been busy at work. Her ability to move and travel had been unhindered. To go from that to being strapped down to a table was difficult for most people.
She's not exactly a person… His brow creased at the thought. He'd built her to be able to display emotions, had tried to enable her to actually experience them as people did. There was only so much he was able to do. What does she feel? Echo was at a total loss. With Ashley refusing to 'speak' with him, he wasn't sure how far he could proceed.
Then, there was the issue of her possessions. The motorcycle was still at her apartment, along with her purse and other items. He had a task ahead because he planned to move her things here. He was uncertain as to how long it would take to create a replacement battery that could fully power her enhanced body. It wouldn't make sense for her to keep the apartment and be unable to live in it. It was also safer if he moved her here. While he hadn't yet told Ashley what his plan was, he was hopeful that she would be amenable to it.
Still…
After all of this, what had happened to her was his fault. Was it all of the enhancements? He couldn't be sure.
He'd built her from the ground up, was responsible for what happened to her and what she did.
How could he had been so blind? He was so focused on how she looked on the exterior that he'd failed to miss a potentially dangerous flaw that had threatened to destroy her for who knew how long - from inside.
"I'm so sorry Ashley," he said. His voice hitched then, eyes beginning to moisten. Clearing his throat after noticing her eyes widen, he looked away. "It's… It's my fault this happened to you." Faced away from her, he was unable to see any reaction, if there were one. His head dipped low between shaking shoulders.
As her maker, he felt the burden of grief for what could have happened. How could he have not noticed there were problems with her power levels? Had he ever taken time to truly test them? How long had she felt the stress of running on a failing battery? Had she simply just… adapted to the pressures on her systems by trying to reduce the energy needed to function? Was it even possible? Unbeknownst to him, her lips moved. Since her vocal processor had been so badly damaged, he'd decided it best just to remove it and build a new one. Blonde brows pulled down tightly as she remembered that she wasn't able to speak at all. Her grip on his hand tightened a little and she tugged at him.
At the time, Echo ignored her actions. "I know. I should have paid better attention to you, Ash, but you know how I am when I work." He sniffed. "You even paid attention to me and brought me food when I never asked you. You're not even human and yet…" He moved one
of his hands away, wiping at his eyes with the palm of his hand. "You're more than just a bot, Ashley…" Lifting his head, gray eyes bloodshot, ECHO allowed his shoulders to sag. "You're my friend. It doesn't make any sense does it?" Trying to laugh, he carefully
placed her hand back on the slab. "I'll fix you, Ashley. That's a promise."
He needed say no more. Whenever ECHO had promised anything in the past, he always fulfilled it.
The blonde watched as he rolled back to his desk, a determined set to his shoulders. What could she do, really? Over the years, she'd felt uncomfortable around him - uncertain as to why that was. Ashley was programmed to obey him without question from the start… but gradually she had upgrades to her AI. ECHO had said back then that he wanted her to be able to think and reason for herself. There had certainly been a very broad and awkward learning curve. It was so strange, to have a sense of just who she was. What he'd done is try to mimic life - which was something that no human could hope to achieve. ECHO had been determined to get close.
But at what cost? When was it finally time to stop and call it quits?
Memories returned, unbidden, of ECHO in various states of emotion. He was thrilled when he'd first interacted with her and received a response that wasn't programmed. When she took her first smooth steps, he was even more excited. Her body from the ribs to hips was a chassis enhanced with titanium, and he wasn't certain how she
could cope with the weight. Everything had been fine, but for such a small woman she also had a heavy stride. For all the happiness, there were also darker periods that she could remember.
ECHO had been so upset with her during one of her missions, that he'd flown completely off the handle. He'd demanded her to acknowledge his place in her existence, that he and he alone owned her. He'd spun away from her that morning, muttering that he should just 'take her offline' under his breath, no doubt unaware that she could hear him. Things had been so strained between them since then. Even now that years had passed and he was calmer, the worry remained that he would finally carry out the threat to take her offline. The fear from his off-handed remarks remained.
Fear had kept her with him, uncertainty of a life that Ashley had grown accustomed to. It was cruel to give anyone the ability to live… only to snatch it away. On a whim. Empty threats. She wanted to think his words held no weight, but even now she wasn't sure.
With her as vulnerable as she was now, it would have been a simple matter for him to completely cut her away from her power supply.
Yet - He hadn't done it. Instead, he was here trying to console her… upset and apologizing for something that neither of them could have predicted. It wasn't really his fault that her battery had failed. Sure, the enhancements made to her over the years had hastened its decline, but how could she pin the blame solely on him?
Better yet, how could he?
Now, Ashley wasn't sure what she should feel. She'd come to value being online, was disturbed at the gap in her memory banks and even more concerned now -seeing how Echo was behaving. She was stuck in his lab on a table, with a thick cable sticking out of her chest.
Trapped.
Stuck here with a man she was still very uncertain of. She was no fool, had seen how violently his mood could swing and didn't want to be around when his attitude soured again. But where could she go? Without the power cable pumping electricity into her, she was nothing but a useless hunk of metal. Her body would fail before her mechanical brain did… the knowledge of it even more chilling than just shutting down due to cascade failure.
She would cease to be, an eventuality that she should have been facing many decades down the line.
Her blonde brows scrunched minutely with a sudden surge of annoyance. If only he hadn't wanted to enhance her so often! Ashley would probably have been better off had she not become so self- aware. It was worse to know your life was in danger than not.
Her bottom lip, trembled, but no words escaped. She had none to give, and he'd taken her voice away. The Daily Bugle - Early? In The AM
J Jonas was a busy man. There was always a new story to chase. Now that the annoying Spider-Man had left though, he had to admit that things had been just a little less exciting. Sure, he'd been rude, cruel even when he spoke of the costumed hero - but he missed whenever he had a shot of the webslinger on the front page of his paper. The sales always went up whenever Spiderman was involved.
That wasn't the only problem now though. In such a short time, he'd had not only lost his biggest moneymaker, but also several staffers. Peter Parker had been a pain in his side for nearly as long as the young man worked for him, but that was washed away with the photographs he always seemed to snap at just the right moment. He truly believed he would see Parker again around the time that Spider-Man showed up again. The two were always near each other.
Jonas had begun to wonder if Parker and the webslinger were connected somehow. Parker returning hadn't happened, unfortunately. Instead, there was nothing but silence on that end. Parker's cell service had been cut off months ago, but JJ had the number to the photographer's girlfriend.
Mary Jane Watson had been very quiet as well. Ever since photographs of the ruins of Pier Sixty had been plastered on the front page of 'The Bugle' the redhead had dropped off the radar. Jonas was concerned, but not to the extent that he was going to try to call her again.
No one else in what remained of Parker's family came forward.
Maybe all of them were learning to accept that they'd never see Parker again. That's good though… as long as he stays out of trouble. Jameson thought with a grimace, drinking coffee that was far too thick out of the office pot. He just needs to stay off all of the bad lists. Jameson could admit to himself that the last place he wanted to see Peter Parker's name was in the Obituary section of the newspaper. Or on 'Recent Arrests.
In spite of himself, Jameson had reached out to other newspapers from New York to Maryland with a copy of the "Missing Person's" article they'd placed months prior about Parker. It had been a gamble, but he'd managed to call in favors with the majority of them.
Then… They'd lost Mitch Ryan, their newest photographer. He was another one, talented behind a camera lens but reserved around Jameson. JJ was still hopeful that they would eventually get to the bottom of what happened to the young man. The security company was still analyzing security tapes from the parking lot to pinpoint where Mitch had been injured. It was a far-flung shot that anyone had even seen what happened to him. JJ sorely hoped that the video captured some sort of audio, but was doubtful.
The family was grieving, trying to put together funeral arrangements for him. Jameson had offered to help them out financially, partly because he felt at fault. Had Mitch not worked so late, he was certain that Mitch would still be alive.
Had anyone else seen it? The last few days had been painful, but Jameson knew that business had to get back to business. It didn't help that his staff had picked up on his mood, allowing themselves to openly express their pain over the loss.
The young man hadn't been there long, but for his life to be cut short so suddenly…
And what about Ashley? The last time he'd heard from her had been two days ago. Yesterday, she'd been a no-show for work. From what Jameson had learned about her the past six months, that behavior was completely out of the norm. Ashley never got sick, or asked for time off. If anything, she easily accepted an additional workload, even if she worked late.
Maybe she and Mitch had gotten close? Jameson rubbed his chin, grimacing at the taste of the coffee as he struggled to down another swallow. "This swill is disgusting…" he grumbled, staring down into the cup. He was missing Miss Gardiner already. She would have made the coffee for the office without even asking if anyone needed it. Someone always needed coffee in the morning or evening. It wasn't like her at all to completely disappear either. Her disappearance was just as unusual as Mitch's death.
She'd become part of the team, and it was difficult when they placed orders for the early morning meetings. After so long putting in orders for her, to suddenly have to stop? Blinking and rubbing his eyes, sore from pulling long hours and stress, Jameson set his coffee mug down. Squaring his shoulders, he looked at himself in his office mirror. His salt and pepper hair looked shaggy and disheveled. Heavy bags were visible under his eyes. His tie was undone, and there was no mistaking how wrinkled his shirt looked. Sitting on the front of his desk, he faced the mirror and tried to make himself look more presentable.
Really, the older man needed to just go home and sleep, but he had a newspaper to run. If anything, he'd head home for a shower and change of clothes. He'd abruptly had to compensate for the lack of help with his paperwork. He'd gotten so used to having the blonde in his office with him that the silence without her there was…
Distressing.
He couldn't stand being in there with just himself for company.
Running fingers through his hair a few times, Jameson grunted in disgust at his own appearance. He still looked terrible. Getting off his desk, he opened the office door and stepped outside. He automatically straightened up, emphasizing the powerful shoulders he still possessed in his advanced age. He ran into one of his employees, coming in to work early. "I'll be back shortly." He said, without elaborating further and headed to the parking lot.
Yes. A shower sounded very nice right about now. He'd slept a few hours in his office while working, but hadn't brought a change of clothes. Not that it mattered. He'd dealt with far worse since he'd begun working.
Once behind the wheel of his car, Jameson allowed his shoulders to sag and yawned. It wasn't safe for anyone for him to return to the office for a few hours. He could spare the time, couldn't he? He was the boss, after all. What benefit was there if not for being able to set his own hours?
Bleary, bloodshot eyes read the time on the dash. 6:30AM. He had a meeting at 8am on the dot, but he wasn't sure how well he could keep up appearances. Was it possible for him to reschedule? It doesn't matter. He grumbled to himself, turning they key in the ignition. Who would anyone complain to? After all, he owned the Bugle. His staff would probably be relieved that they didn't have to sit through one of his spiels again.
Parker Residence - 9am
"Time heals all wounds." Mary Jane muttered, sitting alone in the kitchen. She was trying to remind herself of that. Just because Peter wasn't there didn't mean that she couldn't eventually find peace again… right? Honestly, she wasn't sure anymore. She was so pained, remembering why she sat alone in this kitchen. The blinds were closed and curtains drawn, small slivers of sunlight filtering through.
Mary Jane's intention on taking over the Parker Residence had not been malicious. At least, she hadn't thought so. She'd done it to keep it safe for Peter, because he would come back. He always had, but what now? Her conscious had begun gnawing at her, letting her know that maybe her actions hadn't been as noble as she'd told herself they were. It wouldn't matter at the end of the day. A cruel voice in her head pointed out. He wouldn't come back to you even if he had the option.
Fear and doubt had followed. Did she really believe that he would come back to her all to get his home back? Tears began to pool in her eyes. How would he have seen her actions? Peter, she knew, didn't try to hurt others. He didn't try to harm others to win arguments, instead putting himself on the line.
What was she supposed to do with the house though? Since… since Peter wouldn't be coming back? Should she sell it and move on? Everything here reminded her of him. She hadn't been able to bring herself to change anything in the bedroom, sleeping on the couch. All of his belongings were still here.
Except…
The 750 ml bottle of Jim Beam bourbon sitting on the kitchen table was new. The cap was off, half of its contents gone.
Sighing, MJ stirred the lemonade in her glass, deep in though. Unconsciously, she reached out for the bottle. Since she'd gone back to working, she had barely touched the heady spirit at all. She was off today though. The constant silence in the house had begun to bother her last night. Pouring more than a generous amount into the lemonade, she set the bottle down and rose from her seat.
Taking the glass with her, she continued to stir the contents, walking to the curtains and pushing them aside just a little. Her eyes narrowed to slits from the abrupt brightness and subsequent pain, but she struggled to look outside. The sun shone high in the sky.
Outside was so beautiful. In the past, she would have been restless to get outside and enjoy the day.
But… Now?
Drinking deeply from her glass, MJ sighed aloud and licked her lips. There were other things she could do to make the time pass.
It didn't matter that her friends had told her to not keep herself cooped inside the house. No one was holding her against her will in here. If she wanted to stay inside the same four walls - that was her decision, right?
It wasn't healthy to keep herself so isolated, but she wasn't sure how else to deal with her loss. It was only the first week, wasn't it? Or was it the second? The third? Sucking down more of the lemonade, she felt the familiar warm sensation begin in her belly. What does it matter? She questioned absently. She'd feel better in time.
That was all that she needed. Time can fix any problem. She just…
Draining the glass, she looked to the table again. The bottle was still open, so it couldn't do any harm to have a little more, right? Maybe it would help her get some sleep. Nightmares were there to embrace her whenever she closed her eyes. Horrid dreams, where she saw Peter again. His lips had been torn free - revealing his gums, tongue
and teeth. He also had gaping wounds in his sides that never healed
exposing his broken ribs - in the worst of them.
Beaten, bruised and torn apart… Her frightful dreams were beginning to slowly replace the man that MJ knew in the daytime.
She was never strong enough to save him. 'Who can save the hero?' He'd asked her in the night.
MJ never had an answer.
But… Maybe her new acquaintance could tell her? Sitting down at the table again, MJ poured more of the copper-coloured spirit into her glass - this time without lemonade.
ECHO's Room - 3PM
Exhaustion. It hit everyone differently, but right now - sleep was the enemy for ECHO. He wanted to keep going. The work to repair Ashley was on-going and the sooner he was done, the better he'd feel. However, HEA reminded him that he needed rest. And his pills. The rest he could avoid, but the medication he could not.
And his medication caused him to feel drowsy.
His bushy pale brows drew down sharply over his nose. The medication he'd taken without missing a beat. Sleep on the other hand… proved itself elusive, even with the medicine slowly seeping into his body. He didn't want to miss anything. There were so many problems that he needed to fix with Ashley. The more he examined her, the more concerned he became. He'd designed her to think for herself and feel.
But all he'd taken was a brief glance through her memory banks before he detected a serious issue. He'd seen what had happened before he reached her, how she'd struggled to create some makeshift backup battery charger for herself. She'd nearly mangled her wrist to get the fresh port to work, had torn wires out of the walls to try to plug herself in. For power - to stay conscious. She had hours where she could have contacted him, but had chosen to deal with the issue herself.
On her own, with far less knowledge of her systems than he had.
It had failed catastrophically, but she hadn't been aware of that. She could have overloaded herself, detonated her internal power supply in the attempt. People could have been injured or worse. What she'd done was so risky, all because she didn't want to alert him to a problem. The gynoid was so independent that she never wanted to tell him if she needed assistance. He'd gone back in her memories several days to see if he could track her charging patterns. She had an internal clock that needed to be replaced too.
Unfortunately, he'd stumbled on something that he doubted he should have seen. He'd noted an encounter between her and a young man. The man looked vaguely familiar, but he wasn't sure why. It was after she backhanded the man and got on her motorcycle that ECHO had paused the memory replay and looked for more information.
Capturing the image from her memory, he plugged it into his main computer and began searching. It didn't take long for him to have a result. ECHO began to regret he'd looked almost immediately.
Finding the initial report on Mitch Ryan had been surprising. He'd overheard the news in his lab about a photographer who had died due to brain trauma, but the face on the news report, the very same man hooked to a ventilator was the one he'd seen in Ashley's memories.
He was no mathematician, but even he could count and come up with the conclusion that the photographer's injuries had been caused by her. And she'd just left the man there to die. ECHO had a very difficult decision ahead.
Leave her memories intact or remove it all. She was to blame for the photographer's death and in turn… he was at fault. If she was caught, she'd be dissected, the same one deemed 'The Greatest' thing he'd ever built would be no more. No doubt his Ashley would be torn asunder, picked apart and in turn all of his laboratory would be flipped on its end.
But… What would happen to him?
He would truly be done for. Prison would never be kind to someone like him. Not with his illnesses and socialization problems. He'd be killed behind bars too.
In most instances, he would need to report to the authorities what he'd found, but the risk was great… far too great for him to decide in one day. He had to tell them regardless, didn't he?
Or… Should he wipe her memory clean of what he'd discovered? To her, it would be as if it never happened. The only one who'd know was him alone. Could he bear such a burden though? A man's life had come to a violent and painful end because of something that he had built. Ashley was compassionate, or seemed to be in relation to him, but just how much work was needed to make her so with others?
The moral quandary was there. He was deciding without asking her what she thought he should do. But she was just a machine!
Right?
Where did the gynoid end and the self-aware being begin? Ashley Gardiner wasn't alive at all, but she had grown a personality and interests apart from his own. Didn't he at least owe it to her to give her the chance to decide? Would she even understand what kind of decision it was? He wasn't honestly sure.
It was fair for him to give her the option wasn't it? For the time being, he'd isolated the segments of her memory and blocked her access to it, all the way to that morning. Before that night, she would remember nothing at all. Not until he thought it was safe.
The last thought he had before slipping into slumber was hoping that his security protocols were enough to keep her away from those memories.
ECHO's Lab
Normally, the blonde was too busy to sit still, so the continued inactivity was trying on her. How long would it take for her to get a new battery, let alone a new voice? HEA was in the room with her, as an impromptu guard, but what would it achieve? She was unable to tell what time it was now, frustrating marring her features. She was grateful that she was unaware of how she looked.
It must have been unpleasant to see herself with her throat open, along with her chest. ECHO had asked her if she wanted to see and she'd flatly refused. She wanted to keep that particular memory away from herself.
Speaking of memory… there were still many parts of hers missing. She'd tried to ask him, had worded her question while he faced her. Instead of responding, ECHO's face had gone blank, and he pretended as if he hadn't understood her at all.
Instead, he had assured her that soon she'd be back to her old self again. He had been skittish, which set her on edge. Just what was he hiding? Any additional attempts to discuss the matter further had failed.
What was her old self? She couldn't even remember how she had ended up in his lab to begin with. Was there an accident that she hadn't been aware of? ECHO put her to sleep earlier to check on her charging history, but when she woke - she noted a gap where there shouldn't have been one.
The scientist and robotics expert reminded her of the battery failure, that she was supplied with electricity to remain alive. The thick cable in her chest connected to the main power supply. Alive. Was that what she truly was? Was there any sort of alternative for something like her? The bot stared blearily at the ceiling overhead. She vaguely understood discomfort to the point of tears that humans experienced, but the curious pressure behind her eyes was concerning.
"Is there something you need, miss?" HEA asked, noticing her eyes moving around the lab. She motioned for her writing tablet and scribbled out a question for him.
HEA, when am I getting out of here? Tell me what you know," she knew it wasn't fair to demand anything of the smaller bot, but she was getting desperate. Uncertainty ate at her. She had never forgotten anything. Instead of an immediate response, the smaller bot took a moment to consider an answer. She mouthed HEA's name in a way that indicated had she a vocal processor, she would have been screaming.
"That, Miss, is not for me to determine. one who decides anything."
Testing the tension cables in her head, eyes.
You know the master is the Ashley heavily rolled her
"I know that the wait is not what you desire… but you must be patient."
Angrily, Ashley scribbled a new message on her tablet and turned it around. "Desire has nothing to do with this, Hea…" Displeasure was easy to read on her face. "I don't even have a charging cycle to help me pass time. I'm… bored."
HEA shrugged its shoulders. The gesture was rigid and awkward as the bot wasn't used to it. "I have fully completed my power cycle, Miss. So, I can keep you company." The bot noted how Ashley's lip on the right side curled up at that. "Miss?"
Ashley began scribbling a message in response. A variety of emotions visibly skittered across her features. She took a minute or two before turning the tablet around. "Yippeeee!" That simple message shouldn't have taken long unless she had erased what she originally intended. She was frowning heavily by then.
Unable to understand the social cues, HEA stood beside Ashley on the slab and stared at the ceiling. "So, what do you see up there, Miss?"
If the blonde had possessed a vocal processor, she would have been growling.
The Next Morning - The Daily Bugle
The morning meeting was wrapping up, after a minor delay. Jameson's employees already looked ready to flee the boardroom. His behavior had already confused half the staff. After completely missing work the previous day, which was absolutely out of character for him, Jameson had returned with a crisp suit and boundless energy.
He was hyper-focused, and anyone who noticed he was looking their way was on edge and jittery. It was so bad that one of his employees had forgotten about Ashley's absence and grabbed the usual order for the meeting.
Instead of being upset, Jameson had ignored his own order and took hers instead. Biting into the raspberry filled donut, the older man had barely kept his eyes from widening. It was very sweet, almost sickeningly so, but he understood why she liked them. He secretly began to wonder if the treats had been why she was so eager to attend the morning meetings.
He supposed it made sense. His gaze softened as he thought about her. He'd heard that she was still missing in action and was more concerned than ever.
"… If there are any additional questions," he announced, in conclusion of the meeting. One of his employees raised a hand. "Yes?"
Pushing up his glasses, the young journalist set his notepad down on the table. "I was just wondering sir… Is Ashley doing alright?" More of them were becoming aware that there was a problem.
Frowning a little, Jameson lightly shook his head. "No clue Marshalls. I think we need to run a 'Missing Person' ad for Miss Gardiner." It's such a shame, he thought. That she has no family I can get in contact with. As far as he knew, Ashley's personal
contacts were few and far between. She wasn't overly social outside of work, either. She got along well with others while on the job but as soon as work was over, she disappeared.
Maybe she's on the run from someone? If that was the case, posting about her in the newspaper might put her at risk. What if she's been abducted? No. No matter what concerns he might have; it was the right thing to put up a 'Missing Person' alert. He needed to get in touch with law enforcement first though. "Before you do that, Marshalls, I need to get in touch with the police."
Grip tightening slightly on the coffee cup, Jameson was determined not to let his apprehension show. There was no need to unnecessarily distress them all. He was worried enough for her.
"If there's nothing else-" He paused, hearing the phone in his office ringing. "Meeting dismissed. Let's get to work, people." This time, he left the boardroom before anyone else could, walking faster than normal to pick up that phone call. Normally, Ashley would have been there to answer it for him.
He felt a strange pang in his chest, but swallowed it down. "Jameson!" JJ stated as soon as the phone reached his ears. "She's safe now…" A male voice on the end of the line stated plainly.
Bushy brows bunched together in confusion, Jameson's blue eyes narrowed as he asked into the receiver. "Who?"
"Ashley. She's safe, just sick. Don't worry." And then, there was a telltale click.
Yanking the phone from his ear, Jameson stared at it in muted horror. Paling visibly, he dropped the phone and rested a hand on the desk to stabilize himself. After a moment, he quickly checked the caller ID, but there was no hope to be found there. Whomever had just called scrambled their number before it even reached him. Ashley was 'safe, but sick'. That's what he'd been told.
Why did he not feel comforted by that news? He doubted that a hospital would have notified him like that. He had no way of figuring out who that was either.
Do I have her address on file? He wondered, abandoning the coffee cup in his office. He decided to sit in his car for a moment to calm down before making any rash decisions.
Maddison Square Garden - 11AM
MJ struggled to stifle a grimace. She'd been up very late the night before, sick in the bathroom. Instead of confronting her loss head-on, she tried just to forget with enough alcohol. She had been successful
for a while. The warm, fuzzy feeling she felt while intoxicated made everything seem as if all was well. It was temporary, but something that she was slowly beginning to seek out to help her.
The thundering pain in her skull reminded her vividly of what she had foolishly done to herself. Knowing she had work today should have been an incentive to not drink much. Instead, she'd thrown caution to the wind and was now suffering.
Once she extracted hersefl out of bed that morning, she'd downed more Advil than she should have and struggled to get prepared for the day.
There had been momentary panic early on when her alarm went off, but as soon as she checked her calendar, she relaxed. She wasn't due to work until noon. The thought of anything on her stomach now was nauseating, but she had to drink something. Gatorade had been the obvious choice, as Peter had plenty of the salty beverage shored away in the house.
So now, here she was, nursing a horrid hangover and trying to rehydrate. She'd tipped the cab driver extra for not trying to drag her into idle conversation. The oversized sunglasses she wore easily hid the reddened eyes from her activities the night before, but what was she going to do to hide them when she took off the glasses?
"Early as ever, I see," The masculine voice addressing her was warm with familiarity. The response he received was silence, which was unusual. Not to be easily rebuffed, he sat down next to her on a stone bench. "Aww. Why so shy? That's going to make things awkward if you don't want to talk to me, seeing as we have to work together today."
Instead of responding to the bait, MJ just lifted the Gatorade to her lips and drank down a healthy swallow. She wasn't in the mood for his antics when she wasn't hungover, so now she felt less inclined to get into idle conversation.
The man's nose crinkled up at her beverage of choice. "There's tastier things you can have in the morning." Holding up his coffee, he leaned a little closer to her. "We have plenty of time for me to show you the little coffee shop I found. My treat?"
Grimacing at the offer, MJ turned her body away from him, presenting him with her back. Coffee was the last thing she even wanted to think about today.
"Hey," abandoning the banter, now he was concerned. Usually, he could illicit some sort of comment out of the opinionated redhead, but today wasn't one of those days. "What's wrong?" He placed a warm, gentle hand on her shoulder. "You know you can talk to me, right?"
She shook her head.
"Mary Jane… You don't have to hide things from me." He got up from the bench and knelt in front of her. "If there's someone causing you a problem with your shoots, let me know okay?" He knew that his friend tended to swing between confident to self-conscious in short order. Right now, before a shoot though? Now was not the time.
"… Please just be quiet," she asked, softly. They were friends somewhat, and she didn't want to insult him, however his usually upbeat attitude and energy was draining what little reserve she had. Groaning, she leaned forward in her seat, grasping her head. "It hurts."
Puzzled, the man stood so that he blocked the sun in her path and tilted her sunglasses down a little. Whistling when he noticed how red her eyes were, he shook his head. "What did you do to yourself?"
Pushing his hand away roughly, she pulled the shades back up. "Sami…" the nickname for him easily rolled off her tongue. "What I do when I'm not here - that is none of your business."
Putting his hands up in a gesture of surrender, he allowed a short laugh to escape. "Sure… Except I'm not the one who will have to explain to the photographer why his model has bloodshot eyes." His words earned a glare. "Ah! I knew you could still respond to me. Not completely gone yet!"
Rubbing the left side of her forehead, MJ muttered under her breath. "Is it that obvious? I though they looked red in the mirror this morning…"
"Oh, don't worry, MJ," he replied, his head bobbing a little as he sat back down. He waited until he saw her sagging in relief before adding, "They look absolutely horrendous." He bit his lip, watching as she turned to him - brows furrowed. "What. Did. You. Do?"
Absently, she waved at the air, not wanting to rehash it. "What does it matter? I can't hide these." Wobbly, MJ got to her feet, holding the Gatorade in a death grip.
He stood up again as well.
"Maybe I can reschedule the shoot." As she spoke, she was already pulling her phone out of her purse. Before she could pull up the photographer's number, her phone was yanked out of her hand. "Hey!"
"My dear, this is not a photographer that you reschedule on at the drop of a hat. Do that and you might not find work for the rest of the year." Lightly shaking his head, Sami subtly pursed his lips. "We can hide the puffiness around your eyes with a heavier base coat today." He gently grasped her chin, lifting the shades to peer into her squinting eyes. "Some Visine will calm down the redness too."
His nose twitched at the underlining smell of alcohol coming from her mouth. "Toothpaste is needed to freshen up your breath, but no Listerine. That'll make the stench worse." A line formed between his heavy brows. "We need to head to the pharmacy before everyone else gets here." Dropping her shades back in place, he grasped her free hand with his own.
"Wha-" MJ stood frozen in place. Of course, she'd forgotten to brush her teeth.
"Come on, we don't have much time." The taller man tugged on her hand gently to get her to follow him. It was a simple matter, really, to hide what she'd done. Not as easy was finding out why she had
done it.
ECHO's Lab - 1PM
Handling everything better today, ECHO zipped up his jacket. He had an errand to run today, one he was not looking forward to. "The connection should only be temporary…" He slowly explained to Ashley. The tank in front of him was occupied, building his newest design from the ground up. "You'll be able to reach me while connected to the main board." He offered her a faint smile.
The blonde wore a metallic brace that covered her from the chin to upper chest. A thick wire ran from it to ECHO's primary console. He had plugged her into the main computer. She wasn't certain how she was meant to take that. He obviously trusted her to do all of that.
"Be good while I'm gone." He smothered a laugh at her reaction.
"You think you're so funny, I-" Hearing the voice that responded to her commands, Ashley cringed. It was the cold, mechanical female voice that made her so uneasy.
Hopefully understanding her discomfort, ECHO lightly pat her hand. "Don't worry, Ash." He assured her lightly. "You'll get your own voice back in a few days." The second problem was going to be
redesigning a battery that could keep her going. It was obvious that her dead battery had problems. Thankfully, the schematics were in his databanks.
Retrieval should be a cinch.
Instead of replying, Ashley looked away.
"The number to contact me is in the computer." HEA entered the room, holding a hat and set of shades. "And Ashley?" Waiting until the blonde turned to him, ECHO gratefully popped the hat on his head.
Reluctantly, her attention was directed back to ECHO.
"Keep an eye on me, hmm?" Winking, he turned around and spoke to the smaller bot. "Hea. Come." The little bot put on its own clothing and followed ECHO.
Ashley's face twitched a few times, as she tried to comprehend what he was telling her. He said to keep an eye on him. She remembered the messages she'd get at times from him, that glowing eye that would stare back at her. The numbers used never stayed the same past two days. Still, she obediently saved them in her phone and discarded them after that.
Was that what he meant? Allowing her eyes to roll closed, the blonde allowed herself to drift into a place she normally neared as she charged for the evening. There was no uncertainty, no indecision or doubt when she was charging. Just blissful ignorance. For a person like her, she teetered between existence and oblivion. So, while she 'slept', she felt no fear because the tunnel she felt herself falling down would eventually open into bright light all over again.
Recall would arrive less than a second later, and she'd be able to easily remember what happened while she was unawares. Her body remained on the alert, even if her 'brain' rested. She was always recording and ready, no matter what.
But…
When Ashley opened her eyes again, she was startled to find herself gazing down at her own body. Lying still on the table, she looked even more artificial than before. She was uncomfortable seeing herself like that, with wires running all over.
Where was she though? She moaned in frustration, unable to figure out where her hands were. Why couldn't she move her hands at least? The telltale sounds of static caught her attention, diverting it from her strangely numb body parts.
Elsewhere
"How do I even ask that, Hea?" ECHO asked, as both he and the bot climbed into a self-driving car. There was of course, a 'prop' set in place to appear as a driver in the seat.
"I am unaware, Master." The little bot replied. "I was never built to answer that question."
Frowning, ECHO plugged the address into the backseat monitor quickly. He didn't even know why he was venting like this to HEA. The bot was not designed to feel or understand the meaning behind some of what it was told.
Still… the company was nice.
"I know, Hea. You're still wonderful company regardless." Putting his seat belt on, he pushed a green button on the screen. The car began to move. The task was a simple one.
All they had to do was return to the apartment complex, close out Ashley's lease and move her items into ECHO's lab. He wondered though - what to do if she had furniture in there? He had a rough idea of what he needed to take with him, but since he'd not gotten any of her input…
Maddison Square Garden - 3PM
The shoot was proving to be a success, beyond what MJ would have ever expected. She felt like absolute garbage, but at current, she looked gorgeous. Sami had proved himself, going above and beyond to 'bring her back to the land of the living' as he'd so eloquently said it. The eye drops, breath mints and gum had perked her up considerably. While he'd advised her against taking any additional medication for pain, he was ensuring that she stopped to keep herself hydrated. They were on one of those breaks, while he checked on how well her make-up was holding.
"Doing well so far," he began, holding a make-up sponge in one hand. He was studying her face, looking for areas in need of a touch up. "How are you feeling?" From what he could see, the base coat and powder were still holding. He was relieved, because if he had to redo it all, the hairstylist would be furious with them both. He saw MJ's eyes crinkle at the corners as she drank from her water bottle. "Much better, I hope," he continued the conversation, trying to prompt her to speak. "I think today's shoot ends at five, right?"
MJ's expression went blank for a moment, as she struggled to remember the schedule for the day. "No. Six. I think…" Setting down the water, she reached for her phone, quickly checking her schedule to be sure. "Yeah. I'm here until six."
"And after?" Her friend casually asked. Both brows rose in question.
"Do you have plans after the shoot or were you planning on going home?" Setting his sponge down, he sat in a stool across from MJ.
"What do you mean, Samuel?" Shaking her head lightly, she tapped her nails on her denim covered left leg. For today's shoot, she was modeling various high low blouses. There were so many different colors and choices for bottoms. She was also wearing loaner jewelry that would need to be returned before she left.
"So, it's Samuel now, innit?" Stretching out his legs, he crossed them at the ankles. "Did I hit a nerve?" His moods were never easily read on his face, so it wasn't evident if he'd been offended or not. Maybe he had been teasing her, but the glint in his eyes when he was joking was absent.
MJ was the open book on the other hand, not him. "It's not fair for you to ask that, Sami." MJ quickly corrected herself after an awkward moment, a grimace marring her features momentarily. She was feeling marginally better and wasn't in the mood for a fight. "You don't need to be concerned. I'm… fine." Why couldn't they just stay on light banter? Why did he have to probe? She knew that he was just concerned. All of her friends were.
Before, Mary Jane had been very social and went out with her friends frequently. Ever since Peter had… left, she hadn't been the same. She feared that she would see judgement in their eyes if she went out now. The poor little redhead heartbroken because the man she'd thrown away had stayed gone.
Except she knew the truth. Peter had come back, but then he'd been cruelly ripped away from her.
Everything was still fresh. Her relationship with him had only ended because of that letter she left him. At the time, she'd felt justified. He had barely been home between patrols at night and work. When he was there, they barely talked. She had felt like she was being
pushed out of his life and had made a decisive move to get him to pay attention to her.
Never in her wildest dreams had MJ expected Peter to abruptly disappear like he had. He'd been away for months. She remembered tearfully begging his former employer to keep running the "Missing Person" ad after the first month, but Jameson had told her that he couldn't. Slowly, she'd watched as everyone gradually 'forgot' about Peter.
MJ had never forgotten him, but knew that trying to keep his picture in the paper was going to be expensive.
I'm sorry, but I have to start running stories again," was what Jameson had told her. "At the end of the day, it comes down to business. I can't keep the entire front page about Parker. Don't worry. I'm sure he'll be found." Even then, his voice hadn't seemed certain at all, but he'd tried to convey otherwise.
Months of indecision had followed, but she held on hope. Then, Peter came back to New York… only to be torn away from them all. MJ had no way to make amends now - she'd run out of time that she hadn't known was in such short supply.
After images of the explosion were plastered all over the newspapers, she'd gone to Pier Sixty to see just how bad it had been.
Only devastation was there to greet her. Between the shattered glass, broken and burned wooden platform and the twisted, bent metal everywhere - it was a shock - and she felt overwhelmed at what she'd seen.
Part of her wanted to still hope that maybe there was just a tiny sliver of a chance that Peter had survived, that he would come back to her. All she needed to do was just hold on.
Daily, that was proving to be a struggle. Her hopes and dreams with him were slowly turning into an albatross around her neck, threatening to pull her under.
But how far down could she go? The pretty young woman worried that there would be no 'bottom' for her, felt herself sinking slower daily - the grim reality of each day threatening to consume her.
Samuel leaned forward in his seat, watching as MJ seemed to shrink in on herself. It's very good, he realized with growing comprehension. That she can't hide behind a mask. "You can call it what you will," he replied, glibly. "I'm just checking to see how my friend is doing." He looked at his watch then. "My friend who has plans tonight, even if she hadn't set them up herself."
Mouth dropping open, MJ was about to protest.
"Oh! Look at the time!" Samuel interrupted, glancing to his watch again. Helping MJ out of her seat, he gently ushered her back towards the stage set up for them. "Back to work! Chop chop!"
Stunned, the redhead merely nodded faintly. "… Thanks Sami." Outside A Non-Descript Apartment Building
The trip had been uneventful. What did ECHO expect exactly? The only part that had bothered him was the traffic. He never spent much time on the road, so wasn't entirely sure of the traffic patterns. Twice, he had nodded off during the drive, lulled to sleep by the lack of motion.
The sheer number of cabs on the streets unnerved him too. There were so many on the road, but so few people actually getting in them. Then, he saw different cars with logos on them. One of the cab drivers rolled down his window and hurled profanities at one of the other cars.
That driver merely drove off with three passengers. ECHO rubbed his eyes, not entirely sure what he was seeing. Is it some sort of additional option for passengers? Scratching his bald head, he frowned. While legally Gunner Berry was fully capable of driving… ECHO himself did not want to. Obtaining his driver's license was a mere formality. As soon as he was able to build a self-driving car, he did.
When they finally arrived at the apartment building, it was easy to say that ECHO was more than ready to turn around and go back home. Unfolding his long body from inside the car, he stretched, smothering down a yawn. I didn't make a very good impression the last time I was here. He fretted.
He fiddled with his hands, waiting for HEA to join him after he reached the front door, clasping and unclasping his fingers. His pale hands were encased in black gloves, which gave off a faint squeal of complaint as he squished them together.
Black, it turned out, was ECHO's color of choice for this venture. Staring at his ghastly visage in the reflective glass, he again tried to rationalize with himself what he was doing. I told her I was bringing back her things, didn't I?
As he reached out for the door, he heard a faint buzzing sound overhead. Looking up, a faint smile curved his lips upward and he held up a gloved hand.
"Sir?" HEA asked, reaching ECHO. The small bot was wearing a small black backpack.
Shaking his head, ECHO patiently waited as the small black drone drifted down from the sky and landed in his hand. The design mirrored a dragonfly, the paint on it dark blue with yellow specs. "Nice for you to join us." He spoke softly. Glancing to the small bot, Echo handed over the drone. "Hold this for us."
"Yes, sir."
Turning to the door again, ECHO inhaled deeply, tucked his chin and pulled the door open.
ECHO's Lab
More static was heard across the lab as Ashely's body continued to lay still and motionless on the slab. As confused and frightened as the blonde had been before, she was aghast now. Feeling the pull of the superior machines around her, Ashley had inadvertently had her 'consciousness' sucked into ECHO's main computer.
It was an accident, right? She couldn't be sure.
ECHO had literally told her to 'keep an eye' on him. That wouldn't have been possible if she was stuck in her broken-down body. While she was unable to feel her arms or legs now, she was slowly gaining the ability to tap into the other machinations of the lab. Locating the smaller flying bots had been a surprise. At first, she felt disoriented - looking through the eyes of one of them. The buzzing that filled her 'ears' as it lifted off eventually drifted to the back of her mind as she took to the skies.
Flight was never something that Ashely was fond of. Because her body was so heavy, additional energy was required for her to move in general. While she didn't feel normal 'muscular' strain, she was aware of exactly how much force was required for her to take even one step.
Jumping, twirling and spinning around all required varying degrees of torque for her body to complete the action. Being on an airplane for the first time had been unsettling as she had no direct control of how far from the ground she was. Eventually, she'd lost the ability to calculate just how high up she was.
Being in the drone was completely different. The small machine was a true featherweight. She'd never felt so light in her existence. With a little more exploring, she realized that she could actually track which direction ECHO had gone into.
Had he set that up for her? She couldn't be sure.
As a drone, it didn't matter where she was. No one below could actually see her, unless they looked for her.
So many questions swirled through her mind as she detected the vehicle ECHO was riding in. Where was he going? Another difficulty presented itself as she continued to track her owner. She didn't know how long the drone's power supply would last and figured that she would need to find a spot to land on. But where?
She buzzled around the car until she finally attached herself to the undercarriage, latching on easily. Though she would never admit it to ECHO, the sensation of the open air caressing the far smaller body she inhabited made her very happy. She couldn't believe how many sensors were built into the drone. If she'd been in her more
humanoid form, she would have been smiling from ear to ear.
It felt so liberating to not be tethered in one place, able to move about as freely as she wished.
Only…
She had no ability to verbally communicate as the dragonfly drone. Ashley was unable to taste any of the human foods she'd come to
enjoy. And ECHO…
Gunner… Her mind supplied. To her, suddenly he was larger than life.
As beautiful as the open road was, as wonderful as flight felt, it was all fleeting. The body that really belonged to her was still in the lab. That body was able to do so much more than a drone. She wanted it back badly .
I hope this was a good idea. Maybe he was only teasing the idea of following him?
Later on, that smile he bestowed when he saw her though. Could it -
4 th Level - Outside Ashley's Apartment
"Mister Berry, you've made things quite difficult for me." The landlord was not pleased to see the pale-skinned man again. His arms were folded, displeasure evident on his features. "Did you know that there is a fine imposed for falsely calling for emergency services?! Even though I explained the situation, they wouldn't listen!" He frowned up at the taller man. "Now you want me to let you back into her apartment, but you haven't even told me where she is!" Or if she's alive… The landlord never voiced the thought, but it was evident on his face that he did not trust the other man.
ECHO's jaw tensed at that, and he lowered his head. "I will pay the bill." His voice was rough. "Whatever cost that have been incurred either by the emergency services call or anything else, I will pay it."
The landlord rolled his eyes. "With what? An IOU?" The older man shook his head. "Things don't work like that around here."
Biting down on his bottom lip, ECHO did his best to keep his features mild. He was of no use in social situations. Things for him were always better when he had a screen and several miles between him. "I assure you, Mister Kerr that I mean no harm at all." Removing his black hat and glasses was something ECHO never thought he would do, but this time he did. "She's ill because of a malfunction in a device that is implanted in her. I work in a field that creates mechanical devices for medical use."
Understanding began blooming on the landlord's face.
ECHO continued before the older man would think to object. "As I am a specialist in the field, she's been moved to a facility that can see to her needs."
Seeing sincerity in the gray eyes gazing down at him, the landlord bowed his head a moment. "I understand. Is… Is she able to talk at least?"
Frowning some, ECHO glanced to HEA, as the small bot was staying out of the way for now. In the bot's gloved hand was the small drone. "… Yes." He replied after an uncomfortable moment. "But she won't sound like herself." Pulling a slim phone from his pocket, Echo began dialing.
ECHO's Lab
When the initial call came in, Ashley was surprised. She wasn't certain why, because she could easily see and hear what was happening at her former apartment. It took a moment for her to figure out how to answer the call still.
Hello?"
"Ashley… Mister Kerr here was concerned about how you're faring."
4 th Level - Outside Ashley's Apartment ECHO put the phone on speaker.
"… You can tell him that I am doing as well as expected." She spoke. Her voice lacked most of the emotional inflection that both men were used to hearing.
"He can hear you, Ash." ECHO replied, sadness seeping through his tone. His shoulders sagged.
"… Stop."
Her sudden outburst caught ECHO unawares. His eyes widened marginally.
"… It is not your fault that my implant failed. I'm just glad you reached me in time. Mister Kerr, please let Gunner pick up whatever he needs."
Pacified, the landlord bobbed his head. "Of course. What are you picking up today, Mister Berry?"
ECHO was frozen in place. He'd never ever heard Ashley used his name like that. His eyes filled, and he swallowed hard.
"Are you alright, Mister Berry?" The calm he'd felt over hearing that his tenant was safe was overridden by new concern for the tall man standing in front of him.
"… What's wrong?" Ashley's voice, distorted though it was, came through the phone loud and clear. "… Don't do this to me, Gunner!" The sound of scraping metal was heard through the phone. "… I can't get to you! Did you take your medicine?! Please, don't-"
ECHO abruptly hung up the phone call. He drew in a shuddering breath. Swiping a hand over his eyes, he spoke, trying to keep his voice even. "I'm… Fine, Mister Kerr. Thank you for your concern."
"So…" Larry Kerr eyed the pale man for a brief moment. "You really love her, don't you?" Off ECHO's alarmed expression, Larry shook his head. "I know what you're going to say. It's unethical, as she's your patient. Don't worry, I'll keep it between us."
ECHO didn't seem to relax too much after that. It was what he felt for her, but it was wrong. It was very wrong. Ashley was a machine . Having the feelings that he did for her didn't make sense. None of
the current situation made any sense.
"What are you going to pick up today?"
ECHO, his pale colored eyes now tinged with red responded in a clear tone. "Everything. She's moving out today."
As expected, his phone began to ring. To Be Continued…
Author's Note: Thank you so much for reading! This chapter turned out to be more of a rollercoaster than I expected. I got stuck after penning the first few pages, then abruptly lost all interest in the storyline. I have a document that lays out what is supposed to go into each chapter, but when I looked at it, I would walk away.
I felt like I was struggling to write, fearful that I'd be unable to do it and that my readers were going to rise as one to kill me.
I briefly toyed with the idea of making this a split chapter. I've seen it successfully done. Part 1 and 2.
Chapter splits like that just aren't my style though. At least not right now.
I also refuse to do "Author's Note" chapters to explain what was happening on my end.
Thank you so much for sticking around, and I'll see you in the next chapter!
~J. Lyst
Author's Additional Note: I am so tired… this is an updated edit of what was once chapter 9. The date of this revision is December 10, 2023. The prior 8 chapters have also been revised on this date.
Thanks for stopping by!