Relationship malware
Dr Harper learns there might still be security threats exploiting trusted connections
Inked
“You ok babe? So proud of you!”
Solid and sharp nod from Kate who was more than a little worried and uncomfortable.
Dr Harper was having a boron atom tattooed on her arm, looking like a central star, folding into a hexagonal boron nitride matrix (hBN), appearing as the galaxy of stars behind the single atom. All her cryptographic work used the new hBN machines, optically addressable spin qubits were essential for her algorithms to work, they needed to be stable for longer than the diamond nitrogen-vacancy systems could manage. This was her first tat and a celebration of her promotion to lecturer.
Kate always loved tattoos, good ones, meaningful ones.
CJ’s we so fucking sexy, like one of those brides of the Yakusa, my samurai woman, and yes Kate I know shes Chinese but the tat thing is Japanese and yes you have an Asian fetish and its Orientalism but it’s fucking hot ok. She is mental for white girls, white bitches Kate, you are her fucking bitch, eugh god its so wrong, its fine, its fine, what did she call it “raceplay”, so wrong, so hot, ahhh she has infected your brain with CJ smut. Anyway, so powerful and feminine and sexual, my fucking inked kunoichi warrior goddess, to tie me up every night and punish me. God Kate, focus seriously, oh I love touching her tats and gazing at them, asking about them, being told to kiss them, anyway, Kate come on focus, owww.
“You are doing great! Only another few hours to go!”
“Ok, owww, yeah, great, ooowww.”
“So anyway I was on this awesome subreddit.”
“I, owww, really shouldn’t have shown you Reddit.”
“Awww its the fucking best! All the cyber stuff, the biohacking, LGBTQ stuff, kink, oh la! Kate so much fucking kink!”
“Like you, owww, needed any more of that.”
“Always time for more gooning Kate, I am a woman of culture after all, priorities.”
CJ had learnt Japanese mainly for the hentai apparently. Kate didn’t even have time for another eye roll before she stopped again from the stabbing pain. CJ just carried on.
“Anyway, so yeah, nano tattoos Kate! Like, they put tiny robots in your skin and they respond to your thoughts and feelings. That is so fucking awesome. I made an appointment. Flowers that match my mood, so cool. Sold!”
“How much, oowwww, does that cost babe?”
Shrug in reply.
Kate sighed and flinched again. CJ had literally just got her first actual paying job, well ones that she had to pay taxes on anyway Kate did not want to know what she was doing for money before, and the house was full of boxes.
Flowers, the flowers were lovely admittedly, new outfits, ok you are crazy about all her outfits, fancy cakes and teas, every type of east Asian delivery food from NYC it seemed and of course a new mountain of sextoys. Oh god that one that was like a fucking jackhammer Kate, you nearly passed out, it was like having a fucking seizure, you didn’t stop spasming down there for like 10 minutes, all the while she’s there grinning at you. You said you wanted to be her drug you idiot, her sexdoll to experiment on. You got your, owww, wish.
CJ kept on talking as she flicked across Reddit pages on her AR display, legs up shoes off, lost in her little AR world.
“Oh and also there is this new peptide that makes your tendons thicker, that’s fucking sweet. Cassandra Jiao master of “sinew lengthening” (伸筋) and “tendon changing” (易筋), warrior of peerless might and beauty!”
“Peptides, what?! Owww. They mostly just sell them to people who work on rats CJ! Most of that is research level only, not for humans! Don’t start that shit. Owwww. We have no idea about the side effects, or drug interactions.”
“Uh huh, so might be a bit late for that. I’m emailing you my stack.”
“Babe! OWwwwww.”
“There is one that makes your clit bigger!”
Even the stoic tattoo artist looked up and shook their head and mouthed “what the fuck?!”.
“Gross!!!! OWWW.”
Kate was in for a long first tattoo session.
Class clown
CJ was slipping this ladies’ punches easily as Kate dialed into her eye.
“Oh hey Kate! How are you? Look, check this out, I can share Mr Creampuffs collar cam.”
Another window popped open on CJs vision and also cloned itself to Kate’s third screen. She needed more screens to keep up with CJ these days. The cat was wandering around a court somewhere, chasing mice.
“Aww cute! Yeah good babe. Leg is so, so today, had another wobble in the kitchen, they are going to review the drugs again. Work is good. Oh, shit you are in your class? I can call again later.”
“Oh yeah, no worries I can talk.”
The lady, a 12-1-0 amateur, who was sparring CJ lost her shit and charged in throwing a wild three haymaker combination.
“You can fucking talk can you! You chink cunt!”
CJ ducked under one hook, pivoted away from the body shot and then hit a huge layback to just dodge the huge overhand right. Kate saw it shoot straight past CJs field of vision, less than an inch from her eye.
“Oh one sec Kate, got some trash to take out.”
CJ sprung up on her toes and did a rapid, speedy shuffle step. Then sprung away and unloaded a triple jab. Each step and skip timed perfect. The hop, then skip step, the Ali dance of death. Each jab landed flush, for the final one she pivoted in the air and flurried, four loose hand clubbing almost slapping speedy hooks. The huge counter came in right as planned. One more bob and CJ weaved out of it pushing up from her feet, now rooting and getting her power from the ground, a double, no triple uppercut, the Inoue special, flawless. The monstress at work.
The hours of training data Kate was feeding her was working. Combined with CJs years of dancing, her incredible visual memory and the OCD she was the perfect vessel. Batgirl saw it, she felt it, she copied it and ran it on repeat in her brain obsessively getting every detail right. She was getting every last drop of the 20% mirror neuron efficiency.
“Time, time. CJ, stop she’s done.”
Reese Scott called it, as CJs third sparring partner collapsed in heap and spat out her mouth-guard panting.
Reece was impressed, nearly too fucking late on this round too. She could barely keep pace with this girl.
“Yeah she is.”
CJ leaned back on the ropes and relaxed and smirked. Reece had already clocked the cyber eye.
“Is that Kate on the line with you?”
“Yeah, say hi Reece.”
“Hey Kate, so yeah, thanks for sending this fucking psycho to my gym…”
CJ nodded and curtseyed once.
“Yeah you weren’t lying or AI generating those clips, she’s the single best natural talent I have ever seen.”
“Awwww thanks coach.”
“If she was a fucking natural that is. The eye, the smell...”
Kate glared at the monitor and yelled.
“CJ you are fucking high?!”
“Ahh just to take the edge off you know, I fight better a little buzzed babe.”
“It’s a work night CJ!”
“Ahhh just boxing class yeah, and just a bit babe.”
“Don’t babe me.”
Kate was already well passed a simmer. She had fucking promised.
Reece came back in to the half of the conversation she could hear.
“And probably other shit too by the way she moves and hits and…”
Reece admired every inch of CJ, lightly defined abs, toned and lithe, fucking smoking weed and trashing her girls, moves like Ali and Jesus what fucking babe as well. Just perfect, if I was 10 years younger.
“Those thighs.”
CJ couldn’t help herself even though she knew Kate was pissed. She leaned in and licked her lips in Reece’s face and winked.
“Thick thighs save lives coach!”
Kate was furious.
“Its not fucking funny CJ.”
“Its a little funny.”
“Anyway you two, she’s wasted here beating on natural girls, ruining my squads morale, but I know a gym they would take her.”
“Oh yeah?”
“You thought about the enhanced games killer?”
Kate typed in all caps “WE ARE TALKING ABOUT THE FUCKING DRUGS WHEN YOU GET BACK!”
Then slammed her laptop shut.
CJ smirked a hungry predatory smile.
“Tell me.”
Chapter links
Characters and connections
This story is a sequel to Batgirl Begins, and Manic Pixie Dream Days, Metal Mistress Nights, We have the technology, we can rebuild her? and The Library of Heaven’s Path (天唐图书馆) which explains how Kate and CJ first met and how their relationship started to develop.
CJ is one of the central characters in The Three Moons Mythos 🌙🌙🌙.
Her main story is Connection.
She shows up to check in on her friend Amanda in a couple of her stories; Sapphire, The woman in the red dress and makes a little cameo tearing up the dance floor in Bliss.
Dr Kate Harper also appears in a short story where she gives a talk at conference on Quantum AGI.
Both CJ and Kate feature in my debut novel; “A queen of light and shadow”.
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