“Hey Zoe,” Claire greeted her patient the next morning.

“Hi Doc,” Zoe replied returning the greeting.

“How are you feeling?” Doc Brown asked.

“Is that a trick question?” Zoe answered.

“No. Why do you think it was?”

“Because I can’t see anything nor feel my legs. I can move my arms a little more than before, so I guess I have that going for me.”

“Hey, that’s progress,” Claire quipped. “Seriously though, did you sleep well?”

“I guess. I don’t think I stirred at all since you gave me that tranquilizer yesterday.”

“You haven’t according to the nurses,” Doc Brown replied. “Which is what I wanted.”

“Why?” Zoe asked not feeling comfortable at all with where the conversation was going.

“Because I went ahead and fixed your Kaisers,” Claire answered.

“Really?” Zoe asked excitedly.

“Yeah. I didn’t think you would mind even though I had to put you under for longer than I originally planned.

“I don’t mind!”

“Good. You can authorize the waver once I send it to you,” Claire said. She activated Zoe’s Eagle Vision. “You should be able to see any second now.”

Zoe opened her eyes and then blinked several times.

“Thank you!”

“You’re welcome,” Claire replied. “Here comes the surgery waver.”

“Done,” Zoe said a few seconds later.

“Did you read it?”

“No. I had my Allegro scan it though,” Zoe admitted. “I trust you.”

“That’s nice, but read all documents before authorizing them,” Claire advised.

“Ok. Maybe there’s an app that does that,” Zoe replied grinning at the cyberdoc.

“Ugh.”

Zoe laughed. “I’m kidding. I promise to read things in the future.”

“I’ll hold you to that,” Claire said. She was glad that Zoe seemed to be in better spirits this morning. She sat in the chair beside the bed.

“Uh oh. Serious talk time,” Zoe teased.

“Something like that,” Doc Brown replied. “We need to discuss the options for your spine.”

“I’m all ears,” Zoe said turning serious.

“You have three options. We’ll start with the oldest method first.”

“Ok.”

“Simply put that is carbon fiber grafts that will help heal your bones. Carbon fiber is also the cheapest option,” Claire explained.

“What’s the downside?” Zoe asked.

“You may never walk again even with mechanical assistance,” Claire answered.

“Pass.”

“I knew you would pass on the carbon fiber grafts,” Doc Brown said.

“Then why did…never mind. You’re giving me all my options so I can make an informed decision, aren’t you?” Zoe replied. Claire nodded in agreement. “Ok. What’s next?”

“CyberBionic’s Dense Bone, which is a cybernetic implant that replaces your bones with chromium steel,” Claire said. “Dense Bone also does what the name suggests. The alloy bones are denser than human bones and will make the user heavier. Alpha Force loves this implant.”

“How much heavier?” Zoe asked. She kind of liked the idea of being harder to push out of the way and not having to worry about ever breaking a bone again.

“Double,” Claire answered.

Zoe’s eyes widened in alarm. “I’d weigh 250!”

“Yup,” Claire agreed. “I told Zane you wouldn’t be happy about that.”

“He’s married. He should know better,” Zoe teased.

“Eh, being married to me is probably why he doesn’t know better,” Claire replied giving Zoe a smile.

“Fair enough. What’s the last option?”

“Like CyberBionic, Portsmouth Industries specializes in cybernetic implants,” Doc Brown said. Zoe nodded her understanding. “Portsmouth has created a bone replacement called Alimpetinum Bone.”

“That’s a strange name. What does it do besides replace bones?”

“The name is a combination of the materials that make the implant, aluminum and limpet teeth,” Claire said. “Limpet teeth are one of the hardest naturally occurring materials on the planet. They’re lightweight too. Aluminum is a very light metal that combines well with other materials.”

“Aquatic snail teeth?” Zoe asked after looking up what a limpet was.

“Yes,” Claire laughed. “It works though.”

“How expensive are the implants?”

“Alimpetinum Bone is an import which raises the cost. I’m willing to sell them to you at cost and do the surgery for free,” Claire said.

“You want me to do more runs for you,” Zoe stated.

“I do, but I won’t force you to if you don’t want to do anymore runs for me,” Claire replied.

“How many credits are we talking about?”

“7500 is my cost,” Doc Brown answered sending Zoe the quote she had been given for the custom implants by Portsmouth Industries. “We’ll also need to send them some DNA and bone samples if you want the Alimpetinum Bone.”

“The corporation custom builds the implants?” Zoe asked.

“Yes. They promise 100% compatibility and that a person will walk unaided after recovering from surgery.”

“How could they promise that?”

“Your frame will control the implants just like it does your Kaisers,” Claire answered giving Zoe a quick explanation.

“I’d be even more of a cyborg,” Zoe said as a little doubt creeped in. She was adjusting to the wider world, but still had issues with her upbringing at times.

“True.”

“How long would it take them to make the implants for me? And have you ever installed this particular type of implant before?” Zoe asked. She didn’t care about the cost if the company could deliver on their promise. She read over the quote.

“Yes, I’ve installed Alimpetinum Bones before. Portsmouth says it’ll take 2-3 weeks to build the implants due to demand,” Claire replied giving Zoe another smile. “In the meantime, you could stay with us, or I could loan you a NurseBot 2000 if you insist on going home.”

“Wouldn’t that be expensive?” Zoe asked. She didn’t fail to notice that Claire assumed she would agree to get the Alimpetinum Bones.

“Not really. I own several of the bots even though we don’t use them much and honestly, we wouldn’t mind your company,” Claire answered. “You never visit!”

“Alright,” Zoe said sending Doc Brown 7500 credits. She authorized the quote and returned it too. “I’ll stay for at least a few days. Could I get one of the bots in here to see how they work and if I would like them?”

“Sure,” Claire agreed wiring the funds to Portsmouth along with the authorized quote after she added her approval. “I’ll have one of them bring your breakfast unless you would prefer to see Zane.”

“Either way is fine,” Zoe replied as Claire stood and walked to the door. “Thanks Claire.”

“You’re welcome.”