Erik watched Zera as she walked over to an ugly colored file cabinet and open one of the drawers. He was laying down on a small, hard bed in the corner of her dimly lit, makeshift office. The constant running of her equipment kept the room warm, just like all the other spots she used around the city. The only person in H-Dome 7 who would even come close to touching this was Zera, so Erik didn't waste anytime in finding her.
"So who’d ya play guinea pig for this time? " Zera asked. She pulled something from the drawer, examined it, mumbled a little, then walked over to her computer. Erik wasn’t surprised when the drawer closed on its own, they all did that, but it made him wonder about the purpose of machines and what his own purpose would be.
"Well," Erik hesitated, "Lets just say I won the lottery, but when I went to collect my prize I got a little bit more than I actually wanted." He paused to look over at Zera, hoping to gauge her reaction. She walked towards him holding a wire that she connected to the computer and stopped to look at his head.
"So your telling me," Zera started to say. "That this thing in your head is the same chip that that company--”
“Internal Computers United,” Erik cut in.
“--was offering as a prize for winning in that sham lottery that was all over the news? Because if you are, I don't know if I should kill you, or report you." Erik caught her eyes as she pretended to be serious, and he couldn’t help but laugh a little. Zera parted the hair on his right temple and saw where the smallest, strongest microchip ever made had been implanted into her friends brain. She took her cable and fit it to the wire protruding from Eriks head, appropriately disguised as a hair follicle, not knowing what to expect. Erik saw something come up on Zeras computer just as she turned to go check herself, and figured now would be a good time to explain it all.
“I’m gonna spare you the details on how I won the chip, but I need some details myself on making some changes to the software.” Erik looked over at Zera again but she was obviously engulfed with whatever it was she found. He knew she would love the opportunity to see this, just like he knew she was listening. No matter how distracted.
“I’m assuming that there’s gotta be some level of tracking involved with this thing. At this point, I wouldn't doubt it if they were listening to my thoughts and attempting to control my emotions. Prize or not, these people are not just gonna let me disappear with all this money sitting in my head.” He tapped his right temple. “They tried to convince me that I’m the future of the human race, and our survival depends on my corporation, and loads of other shit.”
“Look Erik, the piece of machinery inside your brain is the most remarkable thing I have ever seen. This technology is just beyond me. But I know you didn’t come here just to show this to me.”
Erik liked the fact that Zera always knew where he was headed when he talked, and he especially like it now. He didn’t trust the software that was now becoming an integral part of his mind, and he needed to do something about it before it was too late.
“I know it’s dangerous, and I know the consequences, but I need your help. Aside from disabling the tracker, I need to know what other programs are running this thing. Nobody gives away extended life and improved brain function for free, so lets find out what it’s gonna cost me. What it would have cost me.” Zera sat there staring at him. If she turned him down now, his entire plan would fall apart. Without her help Erik knew that he was at the mercy of Internal Computers United, to forever be their guineapig. He needed her now more than ever, and he could only hope she knew that. Zera turned back to her computer and began typing, only to stop suddenly and walk over to the bed Erik had been laying on since he showed up. She put both hands down on either side of Eriks head, careful to avoid the wire, and looked down into his eyes.
“I’m gonna help you, Erik,” Zera said sympathetically, “But this is dangerous. This chip was created by a very powerful company, and their reach is longer than you know. They're called ICU for reason.” Erik laughed. He never noticed that.