Getting In Sync.

    Mian stared at the thing on his bed. Of all the bits and pieces he’d taken from that last company, this was by far the most intriguing. A humanoid shape sat on his bed, its head and limbs slumped over like it was asleep. And in one respect it was. Its pale skin appeared to be crisscrossed with bits of wiring and circuitry and a short mop of electric blue hair fell over its eyes, obscuring its facial features. Stamped across its chest was the ID tag, ES-8364. “So ...” mused Mian. “How do you work?”
He examined the robot as best he could, noting the near flawless design and the incredible processing power hidden away under just a few panels. He tested the smooth joints and tried gauge a sense of its functions. One function that was blatantly obvious to Mian was the high calibre machine gun, specifically crafted into the machine’s petite, right hand. Once he had conducted this search, he concluded that he could glean no more information without either turning it on or obtaining the blueprints. His lip curved upward. There was no fun in it if you read the instructions. From his examination, he determined that to turn it on he would have to press a tiny button, concealed on the back of its neck.

    Mian removed the cap from a pen and used it to press the tiny button. He stood back and waited as it began the start-up sequence. Its body hummed to life and it slowly lifted its head. Large amber eyes glowed within their sockets and coloured lights raced across its body. It stared directly at him and with incredible clarity, opened its small mouth and began to speak. “Please state new user ID.”
Mian blinked in surprise. It didn't have an existing user ID or pass code to protect it. This was something he found hard to believe. He had hacked into one of the most secure vaults on the planet to get this, and it wasn't even password protected! A part of his mind cautioned him. If the company suspected they would be targeted, they could have let him take this as a decoy but attached a tracer so he could be found by the authorities. He placed one finger to his lips as he considered this. He finally shook his head; he had examined the machine himself, and there was no way that this was not a legitimate, state of the art piece of technology. His concern remained, but cautiously he spoke, “Mian.”
“Confirm user ID.” Its voice was neither masculine nor feminine, but somewhere in between. Even its face seemed rather gender neutral, but it’s eyes (in Mian’s opinion) when distinctly feminine, with think lashes and bright irises (although that could have just been an LED). He continued the log in procedure. “Mian.”
“Welcome user, Mian. Please select your pass code.”
He briefly considered before telling the machine her new password. After confirming, she then requested she scan his retinas. He stepped forward and brought his eyes level with hers. Through her dark pupils, he could see a lens focusing on his eyes. She recorded the image and then requested a DNA sample. Mian frowned now. This was a high level security check. She extended her arm and held out her palm, indicating she wanted his hand. He placed his hand in hers, and she gripped it tightly. With her other hand she placed one finger on the inside of his elbow. He let out a cry of alarm as he felt a sharp prick of pain. When she removed the finger, a dot of blood was visible on his arm. “Requesting permission to insert a monitor.”
“A what?” he asked in an alarmed tone.
The robot’s smooth face formed a frown. “Command code not recognised. Default setting activated.”
“Wait, what are you defaulting-” He was never able to finished his sentence, as once again, she took hold of his hand and forced him to straighten his arm. She raised her other hand and placed her index finger on the inner joint, just above where she had taken the blood sample. Pain raced through his arm, and this time it hurt a lot more than just an ordinary needle. “What are you doing? What kind of crazy programmed you?!” he exclaimed through gritted teeth. She released his arm and removed her hand. There was a visible puncture on his arm, and a thin trail of blood made its way down his arm. His pressed his other hand against it, hoping to ease the pain.
“Monitor in position. Now monitoring, heart rate. Blood pressure. Respiratory rate. Oxygen Saturation. Internal Temperature.” Mian felt his jaw drop in amazement. A small panel on the side of her body now glowed, a thin line moving across with sharp peaks and troughs. “That’s my heart,” he breathed in amazement. “User setup complete. I am system ES-8364.” Mian felt a grin spread across his face. This was excellent. The technology was clearly superior to any other currently existing in the world, and now it was his. He opened his mouth to give her his first command when she interrupted him, saying, “Insufficient software located. System shutting down.”
“No!” cried Mian, springing forward to grab the machine by the shoulders. “No, no, no! Don’t shut down!” The glow in her eyes receded and her head slumped forward once again. With a frustrated growl he stepped back and folded his arms, now realising why there had been no password. There was nothing there to protect! She was incomplete.

    He sank into his desk chair with a sigh. It was a slight set back, but with his skills it shouldn't be long before he completed her. Now that he knew what he was looking for, finding her blueprints would only take a matter of minutes. And with those, he would definitely be able to improve on whatever harebrained coding they had come up with. In fact, perhaps this was for the best. If he could use his own programs and coding, she would be a hundred times better than those grey bearded idiots had planned. He swung around to face his computer but could not resist looking over his shoulder at her. Her eyes were closed, and her expression neutral. She really could have been a sleeping child. All the flickering lights had vanished once she shut down, except one. The heart rate monitor continued to flash a steady beat. He placed his fingers to his wrist and watched the line shift in time with his pulse. A small smile crept across his face. Now their hearts were perfectly in sync.