Sally at School

>The tired technician retreated to a small lounge, yawning as he dropped a quarter into the humming machine
>Spitting out a bitter, burnt cup of coffee it ground to a stop, the man swishing his labcoat back and taking the steaming cardboard cup in hand
>Yawning again he sipped at the burnt coffee, leaning back on the counter as his partner strolled in
>”Hey Ron,” the first started, sipping at his fuming cup
>”Hey Billy. 839's graduating today.”
>”Oh yeah? Those uh…” He traced back in his head, a dull dossier slapped on his desk some months ago. “The police ones?”
>”Yeah those, finally done.”
>”First aid stuff’s taken care of?”
>”Yep, the rest finally got into it. Good to see them take after 752.”
>"That's... Sally, was it? Aren't they all SALLE?"
>”Oh, yeah- uh, yes and no. Quirk of the naming system. Coincidence.”
>”Well damn,” he puffed, “shame to see them go.”
>”Well it’s just the general stuff taken care of, none of the plug-ins. At this point they’re still maids, maybe a bit better suited to ‘high-intensity situations’ per the program, but maids nonetheless.”
>”Well rounded I guess?”
>”Yeah, gives them a grounding to fall back on, good for stressful stuff.”
>”Hyeah, that’s an understatement. So where are the things now?”
>”Down in maintenance, Trey’s running the disks through.”
>”Heh, this really *is* it. I wish ‘em the best.”
>"Amen to that."

>Down in the building’s basement, nestled deep in the maintenance wing, a shuffling line of chattering nandroids marched one by one into the Processing and Memory Department
>A bored young man ticked another name off of the checklist, another nandroid lying comfortably as the specialized police knowledge she’d need was written in
>”839-S752?”
>”Coming!”
>A chipper, copper-haired robot zipped up the line
>”Hello, sir,” she beamed, hands snapping to her side. “I'm ready for-”
>”Thank you 752, please follow me.”
>”Yes, sir!”
>Following after him she swept her head left and right, taking in the beautifully white, sterile room
>Harsh fluorescent lights danced in her starry eyes as the man led her over to a shallow bench, sitting her down
>”Alright, we’re gonna plug you in first, then do that,” he said, gesturing to a chunky computer flush against the wall. “It’ll be nice and quick, and once we’re done you’ll be ready to go!”
>Forcing a smile for her he turned to the wall, hefting up the thick, coiling charging cord and snipping it into place on the back of her neck
>She rolled her shoulders, shivering with energy as he popped the small access plate on her neck
>”Alright good, good... Jessica you can pop the disk in now.”
>”Right away, sir.”
>The young woman behind him hefted up a heavy disk pack, lowering the uncased monstrosity into the computer below
>Running the male end of another heavy cord to her neck panel Sally jumped at the touch, her brain readying itself subconsciously
>”You’ve got it Jess.”
>The man strolled away to watch over the other nandroids, welcoming the next in line at the door and checking past their credentials
>”Alright dear, so,” the lady began, brushing some of the casing’s dust from her lab coat, “what we’ll be doing is putting you to sleep for a second while we run this disk, and once you wake up you’ll be ready for work! Excited?”
>”Very, miss!”
>The robot shook excitedly in place, the little hints at her future a tantalizing look ahead
>Maybe not a family, but serving the community was just as excellent, surely
>She’d gotten top marks during their first aid unit, especially during the more… *intense* portions of training
>The paramedic they’d brought in for questions was surprised herself at Sally’s *eagerness* for the presentation
>Not to mention all the other hints and squints at police work they'd been directed towards
>Settling backwards, twisting uncomfortably sideways to avoid the bend of of the cords on her neck, she sighed
>Giddy, she layed down and rolled her head, a small press from the technician at the base of her head sending her to sleep
>The whir of the heavy computer besides her ramped up the spin of the disks, the slow copy of information ticking the hours away
>Months of work on the part of Sterling, in generous cooperation with criminal and forensic experts, had created the master disks, the perfect expansion model for their more specialized nandroids
>The SALLEs were an exceptional proof of concept for the versatility of Sterling engineering, the perfect toe to dip into the waters outside of domestic robotics
>Soon, they figured, they’d have pack disks for all manner of specialized professions, from power plant workers to therapists
>Starting with police outreach was a PR victory and a half as well, especially in a country increasingly concerned about rising crime and cities becoming more dangerous by the day
>It was an ambitious project and Sally would be among the first, the content, sleepy whirl of her eyes dreaming up a future filled with nandroids working ‘big girl’ jobs like her

>Upon waking, though, that dream was broken into a groggy, confused swirling in her head
>Unwarranted, unsolicited facts popped up in her mind, a voice her own yet not ticking contextless data off endlessly as she swung upright
>Mathematics far beyond the scope of her basic education burst into her head, fields of fire and statistics on law enforcement shootings clouding her head with the noisy, raucous sound of gunfire and panic
>She clutched her temples, an unfamiliar ache and itch in her nose telling her the specific chemical composition of the cleaning chemicals lingering on her bench and the counter behind her
>With a chunky drop the disk stopped spinning, a small chime bringing the lady, much sleepier, back
>”Morning Sally,” she yawned, fanning her mouth. “*Excuse* me, heavens- feeling alright?”
>The woman nursed a fuming mug of coffee, nicer than the break room stuff- head shivering after a sip she woke up
>”...Feeling okay,” Sally wobbled, cheeks touching up in confusion. “Just… Just dizzy…”
>She planted her hands firmly on the bench for support, the onslaught of information subsiding as she slowed her mechanical breathing
>She focused on a colorfully orange poster, a nandroid asking the viewer who they’d rather have keeping the books as she leant on a blocky, archaic computer
>With how her head pulsed she couldn’t agree less with the bobbed maidbot- the whirring machine behind her wasn’t having his world flipped upside down as far as she knew
>”Oh yep, yep! That’s *completely* normal, it *will* take some time to adjust! Here, lemme…” Gently popping the jack out of her neck, following it with the heavy charging cord, she stepped back. “Better?”
>”A little,” Sally whispered, rubbing her neck. “Will this… Will this last, miss?”
>”Oh no, not at all! You just need some downtime to adjust, like I said, more time to rest too!”
>Escorting Sally after her they twisted and turned upstairs, the smattering of friends from her small class disappearing behind her as they were woken up in turn
>There was a lightness to her steps and her breathing too, pleasantly ethereal and *free*, a little chip in her head muffled for the sake of an open, adaptive mind
>A mind a little *too* open, she winced, the alien pain in her head refusing to disappear as the two emerged into the building's packaging wing
>Blinking in the stabbing white light Sally followed limply after the woman, hardly holding the manila envelope slapped in her hands
>”Alright, you just need to read that and you should be good to go!”
>”...To go,” she mumbled, lifting her heavy head
>”Yep, you’ll be in Beacon City soon! Plenty of time to acclimate on the trip, hopefully! I just need ya to read and memorize that, and you’ll be on your way.”
>”...Okay.”
>Panning over it repeatedly she slowly carved a space in her cramped head for it, memorizing the man’s unsmiling face, badge and more
>”Done?”
>Sally nodded, the woman dragging her off to another station to be processed properly and boxed
>Grievously tired, head still warbling feverishly, she was laid into a bed of wood shavings
>She’d not even processed the dusty mess around her or her missing uniform as a finger slipped behind her head, the technician clarifying that, while she was asleep, she’d have plenty opportunity to adjust further
>That was a daunting prospect, a day or two’s shipping spent half-awake while being tossed around inside her own head, defenseless
>On waking, too, she’d be in some default-mode stupor, another less than exciting prospect

>”La Fontaine, Vincent Pierre,” a moustached voice read aloud
>Sally snapped awake, the two day’s trance disappearing and her head mercifully clear- sleep *had* done her some good
>Eyeing the curly haired man staring back at her she stretched her joints, awake at last before hopping off the desk and grabbing his hand
>”You must be Detective La Fontaine, sir, a pleasure to make your acquaintance, sir,” she chattered, his hand firmly locked inside her own
>A lady cleared her throat to her right, a ball of clothing tossed at the man’s head before she disappeared
>Wordlessly he shimmied his hand back, pushing the clothes into the arms of the half-naked nandroid
>”What’re my orders Detective La Fontaine?”
>”First and foremost please get dressed. After that we’re gonna go to the range.”
>”Right away Detective La Fontaine!”
>”Uh, just call me Vincent.”
>”Yes sir, Vincent!”
>Taking the bunched up clothing in hand she shimmied into the delicate women’s blouse, buttoning it carefully before pulling the dress pants and suitcoat overtop
>The debate club best of the secretary's sister now adorning the nandroid, she rolled her shoulders forward a bit, feet tapping gently on the carpeted floor
>The swishing bell bottoms wrung around her narrow legs, brushing a few eager inches above the ground
>Doing up the last buttons on her trim suitcoat she turned her head back to Vince, dropping a button too tight on her neck from the blouse
>”Okay Vincent, now what?”