The Volunteer
[2,058 words]
[tags: nsfw; mind control; Korps; cyberpunk]
Author's Note: This was originally supposed to be microfiction, then hit 2,000 words. Oops.
Sometimes the most important choice you make is your last.
"It's not so common for us to have a volunteer."
Yvonne's grip tightens on the visor in her hands. "... and this will do it?"
"Yes. You'll be a full-fledged member."
She could still give it up, the rabbit thinks, as she looks to the rose-colored visor in her hands. The damage this thing does is permanent. Even her neural jack's level of access pales in comparison to this device. It would, indeed, make her loyal to the Korps, whether she truly wanted it or not. She can feel the weight of the decision, dangling between thumb and forefinger in a pane of microcircuit glass.
So why did she want it so bad?
The creak of a chair reminds her of the dragoness' presence. Seven feet tall, unsubtle assets, with a visor of her own firmly affixed over her eyes. At length, she speaks. "Take all the time you need. You've certainly been no enemy to us, decker. And we would love to have you as an ally."
Yvonne shudders, imagining the visor going over her face. She'd be just like them soon. Not in body, probably not, she's happy with her mods, but in mind, a place to belong, an identity not owned by the corps, and for once of her own choice. Was it villainous to want to belong? A final act of submission, and she could be put to use. A final act of submission, and she'd know her new family.
The rabbit girl kneels down. She knows it's going to take some of her memories. There's a few she even requested. She'd never so slavishly devote herself to the plutocracy again. Radical self-authorship means defying a world that pins you in place. She holds up the visor... and then hands it to the dragoness, whose face shows a hint of disappointment. Until Yvonne opens her mouth.
"Put it on me."
"Are you sure?" the dragoness asks. To which the rabbit thrusts up her chin and closes her eyes.
"Put it on me!" she insists.
Yvonne can't see the dragoness' smile, but she can hear it creep into her voice. "I'll see you on the other side then," Yvonne hears, as she begins to feel the frame brush her face. "Comrade."
The visor clicks securely into place.