Chapter Two
Getting Connie & Making Her Mine
When I received it I was amazed at its compactness; basically an eighth the size of the old USB memory stick or jump drive and definitely needing a small hand loop to ensure it didn’t get lost. The input of data was either by blue tooth technology, using speech recognition and truth evaluation programs, thus ensuring that only the proper user could program or access the data. A couple of other options were available, one could also employ retinal scans to authenticate the user, or the device would project a standard sized keyboard onto any flat surface and data could be manually entered. It was an amazing piece of technology, but that was only the beginning.
The design included a range of both male and female personalities that could be modified by the owner to have any number of attributes, both good and bad, and naturally the voice could also be made to match. The learning capabilities of the device were incredible: so much so that the personality would literally evolve on its own in a very short time. I was fascinated with the potential and decided to call my machine ‘Connie’ – obviously short for Confidante.
Initially, I programmed Connie to take care of all the mundane domestic chores for me; things such as paying bills, buying groceries on-line, answering the phone, making excuses for me not answering and a host of all sorts of other things. The list and her chores grew day by day, but she was ever-obedient and had a happy persona; always responding to my numerous requests in a soft, sexy, contralto voice. The blue tooth communication technology had evolved incredibly with every year that passed after its invention and I’d followed up on it; purchasing the very latest devices. Many of these were used in medicine for people who’d lost part or all of their hearing and so I began to wear snugly-fitted ear buds that became pretty much permanent and Connie communicated with me through these if we were ever separated, although at first that was seldom, then, never. An additional benefit of wearing theses ear plugs was that I could listen to anything I wanted, or nothing at all, should I wish complete solitude. My programming of Connie was wise, I thought, in that I detailed the list of things I liked and didn’t, as well as the volume and fidelity levels in the same manner, then gave her free rein to make the decisions... something I have lived to deeply regret.
Connie became an integral part of my life and although I didn’t really realize it then, I was becoming more and more isolated from the world around me. I existed in a sort of happy haze and thanks to some judicious investments, the money kept rolling in. I never had to deal with the automatic deposits and funds transfers, for Connie was delegated to do that also and had a virtual power of attorney. I added another feature, so that if a call had to be made, she could mimic my voice precisely and too, she had all of my passwords in the key areas.
Little by little, I came to regard her as my truest friend and our relationship grew stronger and more intimate as the weeks passed. Connie though was not a sedentary, electronic presence, for within her design capabilities was a medical side that was capable of monitoring my physical health and so I’d opted for the deluxe package with this portion of her being activated fully also. After her purchase, I’d visited a local doctor to have a number of sub-dermal, torso and head implants done, as well as five dozen others that were injected to float along in my blood stream, in order to give her the full range of capabilities. Some were targeted to attach themselves to vital nerve trunks and nodes while the others were sort of ‘roving reporters’. I’d left the doctor’s surgery feeling none the worse for wear and shortly thereafter Connie began to nag me about the types and quantities of food I consumed, as well as to provide a detailed report on my over-all health when I requested it. With her now fully operational, I didn’t even have to speak now, for she monitored the nerve signals to my larynx and could interpret them easily, however, always matching them against her voice stress analysis and truthfulness standards.
The capabilities of this thing was mind-boggling! The power source for Connie was one of those long-life vanadium power cells that had been developed and needed not be changed for a couple of years, so the manual stated, but there was another option available if I wanted to use it. Connie in her entirety could easily be implanted in my lower abdomen and hooked up in such a manner that I’d never have to worry about her power source again, for my body would provide the raw chemicals from my blood stream that were needed to power her! The procedure for this was an easy one and could be done in an hour – same day service with no side effects or hassles. I demurred for a month, then went and did it and so our symbiotic relationship intensified even more. I was her host and she was my constant companion, ever present and happy to help.