A simple process

The next afternoon, you find yourself pulling into the parking lot of the CompanionCorp offices. Emi stayed behind, for obvious reasons, but she was more excited about this than you would expect. You think it’s because she’s interested in meeting another Hybrid, since up to this point she had been kept fairly isolated. In addition, having someone else at home while you work would probably be good for her.

As you get out of the car, you look at the building. A fairly new construction, it’s clearly not their headquarters, as it’s not large enough. You walk inside, and you’re greeted by a receptionist, who tells you to have a seat after you give them your name. You’re barely seated when a woman in a business suit walks out and greets you.

“Mr. Stevens? A pleasure to meet you, I’m Annette, we spoke on the phone. If you’ll come with me, we can get your signature on the paperwork, and get you your new Hybrid.”

You stand and shake hands with her. “Simple as that? I expected more of a process.”

She shakes her head as she leads you into an office. “We handle most of that ahead of time. Background checks, credit information, all of that. It makes things easier at this end, and lets you get on your way with your new Hybrid faster.”

You shrug. “That makes sense. I just expected more bureaucracy around them.”

Annette nods. “We hear that a lot. We’ve found that this way works better, at least for now. Now then, we just need your signature on these forms, and then I’ll take you to meet her.”

You scan the documents, and seeing nothing unusual, you sign them. One is a payment contract, another is acknowledgment that you’ll be taking the Hybrid to an approved medical contractor, and the third is just a confirmation of your personal information. Annette takes them and puts them in a file, then stands up. “See? Simple as that. Now, if you’ll follow me, your Hybrid is waiting for you. She’ll be very happy to meet you, I’m sure.”

Once again, you follow her deeper into the building. Soon, you come to a solid looking door marked ‘Hybrid delivery’. Annette smiles and gestures towards the door. “Go on in, she’ll be waiting. You can greet her, and name her, and then I’ll send you on your way.”

You hesitate. “Name her? She doesn’t have a name?”

Annette shakes her head. “Of course not. Just like any pet, the owner chooses the name. I’ll take it down for our records when you leave.”

You hold your tongue, simply nodding. Instead, you turn back to the door, take a deep breath, and head inside. Wouldn’t want to keep her waiting.