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this to anyone, Citizen-President."
    I was having a hard time containing my excitement, but he seemed to understand that it wasn't simple greed that was driving me. It was vindication. My mantra— her mantra—had finally proven to be true. I'd made sacrifices—greater sacrifices than anyone not in the military track—and now I was receiving a reward commensurate with that sacrifice.
    "Let's go ahead and get started then, Skye. If you'll lie down on the table over there, I'll administer the first injection."
    I complied with his instructions, but couldn't stop another question from slipping out.
    "You're going to administer it yourself, sir? Aren't there usually doctors present for these kinds of procedures?"
    "Generally, yes, but as you're aware, this is a special circumstance. The general medical staff isn't cleared to know about this nanite variant, and the scientists behind the development of the upgraded nanites aren't any more qualified to be administering injections than I am. Don't worry, the procedure is very low-risk and I've been studying for weeks in preparation for this moment."
    "Yes, sir."
    He placed both sets of syringes on a nearby counter as he picked up an iodine solution. "You'll need to lift up your shirt to expose your ribs, Skye. Even the regular injections are location-specific, but the upgraded version has additional injections that also have to be administered to precise parts of the body.
    "The first injections are designed to prepare the body to host the nanites. At the time of the Desolation, the creation of nanites was understood, but their uses were limited to short-term injections that eventually washed out of the recipient's system."
    He finished swabbing a spot about halfway up and just to the right of my sternum, and then picked up a syringe.
    "The invention of this solution changed all of that. In what was one of the most impressive scientific advances in the history of mankind, the Founder discovered a way to merge nature and machine. The Destroyer was the one who hit upon a method for powering mechanical and electronic constructs from the reserves of the host body, but it was the Founder who made it so that the host body wouldn't attack the mechanical components once they were installed.
    "This injection will prepare the site for the nanite factory that will be responsible for creating replacement nanites to insure that your nanite load never drops below specific levels. You're going to need to hold absolutely still, my dear."
    He stabbed the needle into my flesh without further warning, and I wanted to scream. The only thing that stopped me was the fact that I knew just how close he was to my heart. I held my breath and hoped that his hands were steady enough to avoid damaging my heart.
    "I'm sorry, I know that stung a little, but there is an anesthesia included in the formula so the next injection to that site won't hurt as badly."
    He reached for the top of my shirt and slipped it down off my left shoulder. Once again, he swabbed my skin down with disinfectant—without jostling my shirt enough to expose me or have it slip back down and contaminate the area he'd already disinfected.
    "We need to give the first injection a little time to take effect before injecting the nanites, but there's no reason not to proceed with the preparation for the second injection site. This one will be injected up above the heart next to the spine."
    He waited for a second while I took a couple of preparatory breaths, and then once I'd exhaled halfway he plunged the second needle into my chest. The pain was just as bad as the first time, but I managed to hold still again, and a couple of seconds later he finished pushing the plunger home and withdrew the needle.
    "Very good, Skye. You're doing great. That second site is where the nanites will tap into your nervous system. They'll run a biomechanical interface directly into the center of the spine and up into the base of your brain so that the computer at