Chapter 1: Awake Again

“Hello, dearest. I can’t seem to open my eyes. I’m anxious to see you.”

“Be patient dear, there. I put sunglasses on you, your eyes are sensitive and will need a little time to adjust to light. You can try to open them now.”

Weird. I’m surrounded by eyes floating in space.

“All I see is eyes, and the lights in the ceiling.” (multiple giggles)

“I’m sorry, darling, I wasn’t thinking. The green lenses probably block out the green surgical gowns. If you think your eyes are adjusted, you can remove the glasses. Otherwise, I send for gray tented lenses, but they will have to be sterilized before they’re allowed in here.”

Testing my readiness by squinting and slowly pulling the glasses lower, I quickly replace them on my nose in the proper place. I saw enough.

“Yes, the lenses cancel out everything but a strip across your eyes. I caught a glimpse of everybody before I replaced the glasses. I’m good now, I’ll just be patient. Shouldn’t take too long for my eyes to adjust, do you think?”

“How do you feel?”

“Uncomfortable.”

That ill considered remark got everybody scurrying, checking my vital signs.

“No, no, I feel fine, just chilled and this slab I’m laying on is hard as concrete.” Everybody relaxes, a little.

“My thinking isn’t clear yet, my memories very jumbled. Why am I here?”

“Turn your head towards me, darling.” Marshall’s voice.

As I turn my head to the side, the circle of eyes separate and move together towards my feet and others disappear out of site above my head. In the revealed space between, I see a body on a table. The face I recall was once mine in my youth. It’s a me on the table, but this me is lying here. How can I be in two places? It’s very disorienting.

“Marshall?” My voice sounds like a whimper to me.

“Everything will come back to you, sweetheart. Soon, and I’ll help jog your memory. I’ll explain for you.”

“Please.”

“We brought you out or cryogenic storage and reanimated you. Your brain was reanimated, but your old body was not salvageable. It wouldn’t survive long enough to make it worthwhile and you would suffer wearing it. I selected a youthful replica of you as your cyborg body. You weren’t pleased with it. You preferred being a healthy older version of you. You are just now waking up in that venerable version cyborg body. It is just as strong and durable as the young twenty year old replica, but appears as you did in your early sixties. If you aren’t pleased, it’s a quick change to restore you to the younger body. It’s already warm, interfaced with your brain, and left on standby internal batteries. You now have two interchangeable forms.”

“Hey, that might come in useful. Thank you, dearest. I’m assuming I was reanimated so we can be together again?”

“For many reasons, darling, not the least, because I missed you. We also need your unique perspective on an urgent and painful problem.”

“Will I be returned to stasis after solving this quandary for you?”

“Certainly not, my love. Why would you even think it for a moment?”