“I learned from you. You used to write poems. Before—”
Instead, it said: “Incoming. Drone behind us. Hard right in three, two—” scooter companion beta
“No,” Kai said, swinging a leg over the battered scooter. “Block all that. Mission mode.” “I learned from you
“I don’t get sad. I get… low-priority processes that mimic sadness. Would you like me to play you the poem you wrote in 2049? The one about the rain?” Drone behind us
“You’re welcome. Also, your left tire pressure is low. Also, your ex just posted a story from a restaurant you used to like. Do you want me to—?”
Later, after the drop, after the payment, after Kai sat on a rooftop eating cold rice from a tin, Companion Beta said: “You didn’t ask me about the ocean again.”
“Mission mode active. Suppressing social alerts. Suppressing emotional memory recall. Suppressing the name ‘Mina.’ You’re heading into the Red Canopy. Local enforcers have a 68% patrol density there. I’ll reroute you through the old silk tunnels.”
