Internal Defences

May 2, 2020

I wake up in my own bed around noon.

I couldn’t be seen stumbling out of Tiffany’s house in the morning following the Getty Ball, so as soon as Birdman ended, I took a quick shower and then snuck out of her gated community, only catching a cab back home after I’d walked a few miles away. That was at nearly four in the morning, and I was hardly conscious by the time I stumbled in through the door and collapsed on my bed.

Speaking of last night…

A silly grin spreads across my face as I recall all that transpired. Who would have thought that Tiffany Najbreit would be so good at giving blowjobs? Fuck. I feel my morning wood poking through my pants, and then I realise with a start that I’m still dressed in yesterday’s formal attire.

I hurriedly slip out of it after hitting the bathroom, changing into more casual wear. I’ll need to dress up again for the STX meeting later this afternoon, but the rumpled mess on my bed isn’t going to cut it. I’m going to need to go shopping again.

But first, I need to get food into my body.

Ella Sue’s out—she’s picked up a part-time job with flexible hours now that she’s figured out that this acting game isn’t going to be cherries and cream anytime soon. I whip up something quick in the kitchen, chicken on the pan with some vegetables on the side, and then I check the AMA as I tuck into the meal, wondering how last night changed my scores.

First come the new names on the list:

Jenny Sterling, Score: -50 (as Markus), 18 (as Claude) (+8)

Hanna Maria Rothschild, Score: -50 (as Markus), 25 (as Claude) (-10)

Hailey Westberg, Score: -30 (as Markus), 6 (as Claude) (+6)

Sean Corolla, Score: -30 (as Markus), -7 (as Claude) (-7)

Morgan Merrygold, Score: -20 (as Markus), 19 (as Claude) (+19)

My old score of ten with J isn’t much of a surprise—she’s expressed her opinion on my art clearly enough in the articles she’s published, but the gain of eight is a satisfying one. It’s a sign that I handled the softball questions at the Ball well enough, and that I didn’t make a total fool of myself. I can be happy with that.

The dip in my score with Hanna Maria is concerning. She’s going to be at the meeting later today, and things are going to be… difficult, if her score with me continues trending downwards. But then again, a dip of ten points isn’t terrible, considering that I showed up out of the blue at the Ball with the beautiful face of the company she’s fighting against. Maybe what really should surprise me is the original score that I had with her.

Thirty-five.

How in the world is that possible? I know from Mr. Samuel’s notes that she met with “me” close to ten years ago, when “I” had to interview with her to secure an award from her family foundation, and I know that “I” impressed her enough back then that we kept in correspondence for a few years afterwards. But what that doesn’t explain is how she recognised me on sight, yesterday. I consider again the possibility that there really is a real Claude Ashworth out there in the world, whose identity I’ve taken wholesale. Certainly, everything Mr. Samuel gave me looked legitimate enough, but I know enough to realize that that’s not proof of anything.

But say there were a real Claude Ashworth out there. Where could he be? I make a mental note to follow up on the question. If he’s still out there, laying low, I need to be able to keep tabs on him, lest my ruse be exposed. And if he’s dead… well, I can understand why Mr. Samuel would want to keep that from me, but the idea doesn’t sit right with me. I would like to believe that he would tell me everything.

Then, there are my scores with Hollywood’s up-and-coming stars. The small changes to both Hailey and Sean’s scores make sense, but the nineteen bump to Morgan’s gives me reason for pause. She was that impressed with how I handled her boyfriend? Most girls get defensive over their boyfriends. I wonder what she sees in me, and a small part of me thinks of the what if, were the stars to align, that I could fuck both her and her sister…

My gaze drifts down to the scores of my half-sisters:

Claire Najbreit, Score: -200 (as Markus), 11 (as Claude) (+11)

Tiffany Najbreit, Score: 80 (as Markus and Claude) (+25)

Amanda Najbreit, Score: -200 (as Markus), 3 (as Claude) (+3)

These changes to the score are mostly as I’d expect. My eyes linger for a second on Tiffany’s name and number. It’s almost scary, how much closer we’ve grown in these last few weeks, and I know that I have the AMA to thank for a lot of it. It really is the silent little engine that always keeps the wheels greased.

I head over to the Perks menu next, taking stock of the menu on display:

Curent Points: 150

Perk - Internal Defences I: Makes your immune system respond roughly twice as strongly to threats. Upgradeable. Cost: 50 points.

Perk - Fearlessness I: Gives you the ability to selectively disable your sense of fear. Upgradeable. Cost: 50 points.

Perk - Joy’s Deliverance II: Makes anyone you sexually couple with capable of orgasming from stimulation to any erogenous zone. Upgradeable. Cost: 150 points.

Perk - Swoon: Anyone meeting you for the first time gets butterflies in their stomach. Cost: 250 points.

Perk - Quiet ****: Die painlessly. Cost: 1000 points.

More perks may be unlocked through further use of the app.

It hasn’t changed since the last time I’ve seen it, but what I do have now is a few extra points to spend.

I’d been eyeing Internal Defences before, but was scared to go through with it. An immune system responding twice as well to threats sounds good for all of ten seconds, until you realise that it also means you’re twice as likely to get arthritis, lupus, and MS. Plus, with my body recovering from Dr. Kee’s surgery, the last thing I need is an over-active immune system rejecting my new implants. That would be a world of trouble and pain.

Internal Defences II will address your concerns.

The text flashes across the screen, and I read it twice, the message the first time not quite getting through. Right. This app talks to me, sometimes.

It will make your immune system respond twice as strongly only to threats when you would want it to.

That’s reassuring to know. I silently thank the app in my head, guessing that it will pick up on the message.

I do some quick arithmetic in my head—Joy’s Deliverance I cost me 100 points, and Joy’s Deliverance II costs 150. Since Internal Defences I costs 50 points, if it follows the same increase as Joy’s Deliverance, then Internal Defences II should cost 100. I have 150, so I’m covered in that case. And if it’s based on a percentage of the original cost? Then I am sitting real pretty.

I sit for a second, wondering if the app is going to tell me anything more, but it stays quiet.

I hit the buy button.

I don’t feel any different inside. But then again, I wouldn’t expect to. Not immediately, a least.

And then I see the text for the next level, and let loose a long string of curses.

Perk - Internal Defences II: Makes your immune system respond roughly twice as strongly to threats when it would make you healthier. Cost: 250 points.

I have 100 points in the bank. I’m short 150. How the fuck is this possible, and what fucking idiot designed this app?