The daughter-in-law

“Robert and Elizabeth, I now pronounce you husband and wife!” said the priest. “You may share your first married kiss!”

Robert’s mother wiped away tears of happiness.

***

“Mom!” Robert Ramsay jumped out of the vast, high-tech, stylized house, barely seeing his mother’s flyer descending to the parking lot.

Mrs. Ramsay left the landing green flyer but did not approach yet; he raised his head, looking at the bright blue sky with thin white clouds as if smeared across the sky’s surface. Another flyer appeared from afar, this time gray. Robert glanced sideways at the uninvited guests in surprise but did not say anything.

When the unknown flyer approached, he saw the NewBioTech emblem and mentally whistled. When two burly technicians in gray NewBioTech uniforms with red stripes began unloading the bulky module, it became clear that the mother had been generous enough to buy a whole machine-human hybrid. This purchase is weird for him; she had never planned to become a "slave owner."

“Sign here and here,” one of the technicians said, handing his mother a tablet and stylus and pointing to the right places. Then, he casually scribbled his signature. 

“Thank you. Is this your son? Then he needs to sign, too,” The technician took the tablet back and handed him the stylus, pointing to the right place. Robert had to scribble a simple curlicue of a signature. “Who will be the primary owner?” The technician asked.

“He,” the mother lightly nudged her son on the shoulder. Robert looked down at the ground, his cheeks blushing. He, an ordinary human—and the owner of a cyborg?

“Then sign here too,” the technician said, turning the page on the tablet, which showed a lengthy document typed in small print. “All data on your cyborg has already been sent to your home AI; the warranty is five years from the date of purchase. If the operating rules are violated, the warranty is canceled, and the cyborg is removed for repair. Do not beat, torture, or give the cyborg excessive loads. The permissible limits are prescribed in the instructions.”

The technician continued to read the operating rules, and Robert quietly swayed. Just think, someone else could have thought of beating or torturing cyborgs. They are almost a new intelligent race created based on people. They are the same people, only with crystals in their heads. 

“If the body dies and the head is intact, you can extract the crystal and come to the NewBioTech office. We’ll find a suitable body for it,” The technician approached the module and opened the lid. The second technician disconnected the holders, and Robert was surprised by what he saw. He did not expect to see a fair-haired female cyborg! She was dressed in a gray jumpsuit, her skin was ashen, and her eyes were closed. 

“The cyber-organism will remember everything that happened before the body died. If, of course, the crystal remains intact. If the crystal is damaged, you must buy a new one. And then it will be a different hybrid; it will need to be configured again.” The technician finished.

The second technician pushed aside hair strands and pointed to a small mole at the back of the cyborg’s head. He pressed it, and the piece of skin on her temple smoothly moved to the side, revealing a small iron-reinforced bone insert. He showed how to properly pry the plate off, revealing a pinkish, pulsating crystal in her skull.

The first technician explained, “I don’t recommend removing the crystal unless necessary. The cyborg might glitch, lose memory, or break. Only in an emergency.”

In the meantime, the technician closed the strange cutback with bone and skin and woke the bionic woman. She instantly opened her sky-blue eyes, staring at Robert as if she had already understood who would be her owner.

“Water,” The woman asked quietly. The technician silently thrust a bottle of drinking water, previously stored in the module, into the confused Robert’s hands.

“Better you give it to her; she should understand you will care for her. It is a simple ritual, but it strengthens the bond.”

Man awkwardly intercepted the bottle and put it to the woman’s lips, surprised at how she managed to empty it in a couple of sips. 

“Don’t feed her for two hours; then you can give her any regular food,“ he advised, looking at the satisfied customers. Robert helped the cyborg get up, allowing her to stretch after lying motionless in the module.

After all the procedures, the technicians took the module and flew away, and Robert could finally talk to his mother.

“Mom, why the cyborg?” Asked Robert, looking at a bionic woman. The cybernetic woman stood beside them, looking at the house and the surrounding area with an expressionless look. However, with each passing minute, she seemed to acquire her personality.

“Because you need to have a larger social circle, and you don’t communicate with anyone besides your co-workers,” Mrs. Ramsay sighed and put her hand on her son’s shoulder. “So I decided to give you a gift which will change your life. Her program allows her to work with you and participate in your research. She will be there day and night. She will help you in everything. And me, too. Moreover, I was told she does not argue and follows instructions clearly without asking questions. I won’t live forever.”

She put her arm around the cyborg’s shoulders. "Yes, the purchase was a success. It was hard to persuade the NewBioTech management to accept the order because they only fulfill the orders for the government. However, I was made an exception as a senior engineer and a highly respected citizen. This cyborg is the best gift for my beloved son. Now, our family has a new tenant. Not a slave, not a purchase, but a family member. She is an adopted daughter for me; and for Robert... time will show." 

Mrs. Ramsay hoped that something good would come of it, like love. And if it didn’t, she would do everything possible to make it happen. Better a homemade, tested cyborg than some unknown woman from who knows where. And then she would sleep peacefully, knowing that her son was safe and looked after.

“What name should we give her?” Robert asked.

His mother thought for a moment, “Let’s call her Elizabeth.”