"Cynthia, is the fax machine working now?"
Across the city at Misfits Music, oblivious to the events at the rival company, Jetta Pelligrini pushed open the door of the office, casting the technician a questioning look. There was no response, and Jetta frowned, tapping on the door.
"Cynthia? Are you on this planet? Can I send a bleedin' fax or do you expect me to walk on water to flippin' London to deliver it by 'and?"
"Huh?" Cynthia looked up, startled. Then she frowned. "I'm sorry, Ms Pelligrini. I was quite lost in my thoughts, I'm afraid. The fax machine? I have located the error and have re-calibrated it. It should work fine now, and stop sending your faxes to Tokyo when you want them to go to New York."
"That's a good thing." Jetta rolled her eyes. "Wretched inventions are supposed to make life easier. Technology's all very well, you know, but when it breaks down it causes twice as much work."
She cast Cynthia another glance.
"An' 'adn't you better be goin'? It's almost seven an' you've been 'ere since before I was this morning. Don't you sleep like everyone else?"
"I was just about to leave." Cynthia offered a smile. "Thank you, Ms Pelligrini. Good night."
"Night, Cynthia." Jetta raised her hand in a wave, heading across to the fax machine. Cynthia slipped out of the open door, heading slowly down the corridor towards the lift. Around her she heard the voices of the cleaners, laughing and joking, and occasionally she was passed by the odd executive or intern working late. A few she greeted with a vague smile and a wave, but once inside the lift car, she sank back against the panelling, closing her eyes.
Jetta's words echoed in her head.
"When it breaks down it causes twice as much work." She murmured. "Am I breaking down, though? It's true that my projection has been off recently. But I have been working hard. Very hard. Especially since Jerrica died. And, well, Aaron and I did all that experimenting with my geographical inhibitors. I did take that drive out of Los Angeles to San Diego the other weekend, just to prove I could do it, and sample another city. Maybe it's all too much on my circuits. I don't know. Whatever it is, I have to snap out of it."
She slid her projector off her wrist, glancing at it.
"The thing is, if it's simply a projection malfunction, why is it that I have so many inconsistencies in my databanks all of a sudden?" She wondered. "I remember coming to work this morning. I remember very clearly the conversation about the fax machine, Pizzazz's temper, the Jewel girls going to the office, and Syl talking about a girl's night. But where I went at lunch, or what I did? I have no recollection. Perhaps it's more than simply a glitch. The only other time I've had lapses in my memory is when that Techrat man infected me with a virus. And yet, I feel no other ill effects. Just...so very worn. Worn and tired."
She sighed.
"I should speak to Aaron." She decided aloud. "He would know what to do. But I intrude on his married life so much already. Since he and Copper tied the knot, he's spent far too many nights performing emergency repairs on my mainframe, or trying to enhance my capabilities. It's not fair. Copper doesn't complain because she's sweet and we're friends. But I know what happens to a pairing where the partners work too much apart. I will not be the thing that divides another marriage."
She shook her head.
"No. I will not resort to that yet." She decided, as the lift reached the ground floor, and the big steel doors slid back. "Nobody knows my circuitry as well as I do, after all. There must be a simple explanation why I'm having this problem, and I'm sure I can reach a conclusion without disturbing Aaron."
She stepped out into the lobby, glancing around her for someone she knew. "I wonder if any of the others are still around, or if I'm getting a taxi home. It's such a nusiance, having to make sure my projector gets home so noone gets curious about it. It would be so much easier to just shut down for the night, but I..."
She stopped dead as a barrage of disconnected images flashed across her processors, paralysing her movement for a split second. For just that instant, the whole of Synergy's data banks seemed to be flooding her sensors, then, as quickly as they had come, the pictures were gone. Unnerved, Cynthia glanced around her to see if anyone had witnessed what she had, but the security guard hadn't even glanced up from his paper, and besides him there was noone else in the lobby. She closed her eyes briefly, trying to retrieve the files, but even as she did so she knew they would no longer be there.
"That's twice in an hour." She whispered, glancing down at her hand as she caught a flicker in her projection. "I need to get home. I'm tired...I'm confused. My circuits are hot and bothered and I need to rest."
She hurried across the lobby and out of the front doors, pausing in the carpark as she hunted for a familiar vehicle. As she did so, she caught sight of a shadow across the way, half concealed by bushes. As she watched, she thought she saw the faint outline of a woman, watching her with intense blue eyes. There was something unnatural about the figure, and despite herself, Cynthia had to look away. When she glanced back, the figure was gone, and she frowned, shaking her head as if hoping to clear it.
"Hallucinations." She muttered. "I am tired. This is ridiculous! I need to defragment my memory. I have bits and pieces everywhere and they're obviously jamming up my optical units!"
"Cynthia?"
A voice made her jump, and she swung around, seeing Copper watching her. At her expression, the drummer frowned.
"What's eating you?" She asked softly. "Because something is, isn't it?"
"I didn't know you were still here - you startled me." Cynthia said quietly, crossing the tarmac to join her friend. "It's late. I thought Jewel had all left."
"We did." Copper nodded. "But I realised I'd left my sticks here when I got home, and I was just getting them. I was about to leave when I saw you come out of the building. Do you need a ride?"
"A ride would be most welcome, Copper. Thank you." Cynthia nodded her head, though her gaze kept flitting back to the bushes. "It's been a long day and I'm tired - I need to defrag and shut down."
"So no girl's night tonight, then?" Copper asked. Cynthia shook her head.
"Tomorrow would be better." She admitted. "I'm literally spent."
She cast a final glance back at the bushes, but there was no sign of the figure now. Copper touched her arm.
"What are you looking for?" She murmured.
"I thought I saw someone I knew." Cynthia shrugged. "But I think I was mistaken."
"Someone you knew? Other than me?" Copper was confused. Cynthia nodded.
"Yes." She agreed absently. "Someone I was acquainted with so very long ago."
"I see." Clearly Copper did not see. She pulled her keys from her pocket, unlocking her car. "Are you sure you're quite all right, Cyn? You sound frazzled...and on edge."
Cynthia made no reply to begin with, climbing into the passenger seat of Copper's car and pulling the door shut behind her.
"I suppose it's silly." She said at length. "It just startled me. Seeing who I thought I saw...well, it's impossible."
"Impossible?" Copper cast her a quizzical glance, putting the car in gear. "Why so?"
Cynthia sighed.
"Because she's dead." She said at length. "It was Jacqui Benton I saw in the bushes, watching me."