Private Numbers and Signals

[Ana Rix]

The narrow storefront sat wedged between a parts recycler and a shuttered café, its sign half-lit in soft blue and white: Axiom Systems & Repairs. The lettering was old but meticulously maintained, the kind of place that didn't advertise loudly because it didn't need to. On Echelon, reputation traveled faster than holos.

Inside, the shop was a controlled blend of order and lived-in chaos.

One wall was lined with transparent cabinets filled with precision tools, micro-soldering rigs, calibrators, and modular cybernetic components arranged by size and function. Another held racks of datapads and portable terminals, each tagged and labeled in neat, consistent handwriting. Workbenches ran along the back and side walls, layered with half-disassembled droids, exposed prosthetic limbs, neural interface ports, and open casing plates revealing delicate lattices of wiring and light.

Soft white task lighting hung over each station, adjustable and carefully positioned. Between them, warmer ambient lamps cast a muted glow, keeping the space from feeling sterile. The air carried the faint scent of coolant, warm circuitry, and recycled ozone, clean but unmistakably technological.

A low hum threaded through everything, the sound of processors running diagnostics, charging cradles cycling power, and a small wall-mounted server rack quietly doing its work.

Behind the main counter, Ana was seated on a high-backed stool, one leg hooked casually around the rung as she worked.

She wore a fitted charcoal-gray tunic beneath a light slate-colored jacket with a high collar and reinforced seams, the sleeves rolled neatly to her forearms. The fabric was practical yet well-kept, designed for long periods of movement without sacrificing its shape. Dark straight-cut trousers and well-worn low boots completed the look, grounded and functional enough to let her disappear into almost any crowd when she needed to.

A pair of thin magnification lenses rested over her eyes, linked to a small holo-display hovering near her left temple. Her dark hair was pulled back into a low, efficient tie, keeping it clear of circuitry and tools.

On the counter in front of her lay an open cybernetic forearm, its casing removed to reveal a lattice of fiber-optic channels and micro-actuators. She worked with steady precision, guiding a calibration probe along the interface ports while a diagnostic readout floated beside her.

Numbers. Signals. Response curves.

Everything had to be perfect.

She adjusted one connection, paused, checked the readout, then made a tiny correction with the tip of her stylus. Satisfied, she exhaled quietly and began sealing the housing.

That was when the door slid open.

A soft chime sounded, subtle but clear, announcing a new arrival.

Ana's eyes lifted instinctively from her work, magnification lenses dimming as her focus shifted toward the entrance, her posture straightening just slightly as she registered the presence at the threshold.

Kaylee Xendos

 

[Kaylee Xendos]

Kaylee had long sense placed this order to a local shop she had heard about through word of mouth. She trusted that more than holo's personal experience had taught her that many times over having gotten faulty parts from holo ads and reports claiming quality over quantity but that always seemed to be a trend that failed her. She started to trust only what she could prove and word of mouth was proof enough for her as this was a person having done business with a place before. This was something she could trust. She had requested a prosthetic for an ackdog that she had been saving as she had found it hurt and it became her new project.

Kaylee moved towards the shop wearing her black suite and blue cape she wasn't sure why she wore the cape it just made her feel right. the skin tight suit held her but did not restrict her movements in any way it was almost like a second skin for her with soft blues across the front. her long blue hair cascaded and was highlighted by the darkness of the blue cape. her boots clicked with a measured walk someone who meant business but also was lost at the same time.

As the door opened she stepped inside and glanced around it felt like another workshop to her reminded her of home she could of built the prosthetic on her own but she was busy with other adjustments to the ackdog that now had half its face being made of durasteal and its eye had been replaced with an ocular implant. its fur also seemed softer but somehow it also appeared to be like an armor for the dog. It's front right leg was missing as she carried it in her arms it was still a pup but she had been nursing and upgrading the poor thing for almost a year now.

"Good afternoon, I hope I'm at the right place I put in an order for an ackdog prosthetic with specific specs to be crafter I was told you where the best for high end prosthetics tuned to the peak."

She continued in and looked about running her fingers over the exposed prosthetics and even stopping to pick one up and inspect it popping the casing with a practiced ease she sealed it up once done inspecting the inner workings and put it back then turned her attention back to Ana Rix .

 

[Ana Rix]

Ana was in the middle of an adjustment when the door opened.

A soft-blue holo-interface shimmered in the air beside her workbench, projected from a low-profile emitter built into the table. Schematics sat in neat layers of transparency, tolerances, and material readouts scrolling at a calm pace while her fingers worked with practiced precision. She paused as the bell chimed, the sound threading through the steady hum of servos and power cells.

She looked up.

The shop was never quiet, not really. It breathed. Power conduits ran exposed along the walls in deliberate order, bundled and labeled rather than hidden. Racks of prosthetic limbs and cybernetic components lined one side of the room, each tagged with handwritten notes alongside clean digital readouts. Tools were arranged with careful intent, not for show, but for use. The air carried the faint scent of machine oil, sterilizing agents, and warm circuitry.

Ana straightened, setting the tool down and dismissing part of the holo-display with a small motion against the bench controls. Her eyes moved to the newcomer first, taking in the dark suit and blue cape, the measured steps, the way she held herself as if she were used to solving problems alone.

Then her focus sharpened. The ackdog.

Ana's gaze immediately tracked the missing foreleg, the existing work along the animal's face, the ocular implant, the way the pup's weight shifted in Kaylee's arms as if it had already learned to compensate. Not judgment. Just assessment, quiet and exact.

She stepped out from behind the workbench, slate-gray tunic sleeves rolled and faintly smudged with grease, a light jacket worn open for practicality. Her boots made little sound on the floor as she closed the distance, stopping at a respectful angle rather than crowding.

When Kaylee spoke, Ana listened without interrupting. The order. The specs. The expectation that this shop could build what had been requested.

Ana's eyes flicked once toward the holo-interface. The name and order details sat there, confirmed and waiting. Her mouth curved into a small, genuine smile.

"You're in the right place," she said evenly. "And yes, I have your order."

Her gaze returned to the ackdog, softer without losing focus, and she crouched slightly so she wasn't looming over the animal.

"You've done a lot already," Ana added, voice calm, not flattery so much as recognition. "The integration on the face is clean, and the ocular mount looks stable. That matters, because whatever I build has to match what you've already taught it to accept."

She straightened and gestured toward the workbench, inviting rather than directing.

"I'm Ana Rix," she said. "I do adaptive prosthetics and cybernetics. Not just replacing what's missing, but tuning it to how the body actually moves."

Her eyes returned to Kaylee's face, attentive and controlled.

"Before I finalize anything," Ana continued, "I want to confirm your specs with you in person. Ackdogs compensate by instinct, and if the fit is even slightly wrong, it won't fail loudly. It'll fail over time."

She stepped aside a fraction, leaving Kaylee space to set the pup down if she chose.

"Take your time," Ana finished. "Nothing in here is rushed."

Kaylee Xendos