The Eternal Recurrence

Sine knew how easy it was to get ahold of some things, but even she surprised herself sometimes.

"Daniel, for the LAST time, get over here. I need to make sure your fillings aren't ferrous metal."

"Fuck no," growled Daniel, hunched in a corner. "I'm not letting you stick lasers in my mouth! I had enough of that shit at Rutledge!"

Carol rolled her eyes. "Ugh, here we go. You want me to go fetch him?"

"Yes. I'd rather be sure that when we do the MRI scans, we don't accidentally pull his teeth out."

Carol nodded, and then walked over to where Daniel was crouching, hackles raised and spikes drawn. She knelt down next to him and looked him dead in the eyes.

"Look, Danny," she began, in her sweetest voice. "If you be a good boy and let Sine check your teeth-"

"Keep that shit up," snarled the older man, "and I'm gonna-"

"-and I'll pay for next week's Jack. Interest free."

The spikey-haired mutant was in the chair in two seconds. The process was, thankfully, just boring.

"There. See? Now, if you want to be REALLY safe, you'll get in the MRI machine and lay there still for...three hours." Sine said, flipping through some papers. "...hmmm. A sedative might be the best way..."

"Ugh, sedatives." Daniel shuddered. "I mean, it beats being strapped to the table, but I always wake up feeling like a car accident victim."

"Got any other alternatives?" was Carol's response. Daniel paused to consider this, then shrugged - an obvious no.

"I'll be honest with you, Daniel...this isn't NEEDED, but...the thing with mutations, you might be stable today, but five years from now you wake up and find you're melting. Trust me...I lived in a world with mutations that gifted superhuman powers, and was witness to a few very considerable scares. A clean medical bill NOW means something to compare it to down the line. Or if you wake up and find yourself turned into a sweater." Sine said, as she kept flipping through pages.

"...fine." Daniel got out from the chair and headed over to the MRI. And for once, he had no snarky 'but' to add to this as he lay down on the mat.

"What's our current delivery list?" Sine said, activating the machine.

"Hmmm... A crate of peanut sprouts to Pachyderma Major, fifty gallons of salt water to the Finneous system - poor guys are having a drought - some pizzas to Mr. Harold Finklemann and his family on Colony Beta and a consignment of Green Spice for the Screebles on Willus.

"Also, a rubber chicken, no name given."'

"Simple work. Simple is good. You should have been here when I had to deliver a meme. Took me seven weeks to scrub it out of my brain. Daniel, breathe deep, I'm administering the sedative." Sine said. "Well, now for three hours of nothing because he has to stay stock still. Any ideas how to pass the time?"

Carol blinks. "...how does that even work? Like, did you have to put it on a floppy disc or what?"

Daniel does as told, but grunts a little as the sedative is administered.

"Movements scrambles the image, beyond the most basic twitches. It needs to be clear. Since Daniel has such compact bones, it takes a really long time. In a few days I'll be getting my biyearly brain scan...I'll need to be under for seven hours due to the house of cards this grey matter is." Sine said, tapping her head. "At least whatever changed me was considerate enough to give me proper equipment for it."

"...well, good luck with that. Can't imagine having to sit still for seven whole hours, myself. Yeesh!" Carol said.

"Price of being...whatever I am. And having no clue what it is." Sine said.

Carol shrugs. "Well... Could always watch a movie. Wanna see what's on Sky Box Office?"

"Probably porn."

"SBO doesn't show porn!"

"Based on its most popular shows you could have fooled me."

"Hey, Danerys is cute," Carol retorted. "Sue me. Or don't, because that would be a legal nightmare."

"But since I...don't...oh dear...leak...Carol hold your breath...the sedative...drifted over here..." Sine said, sitting heavily into a chair. "Go ahead and watch TV...just watch Daniel too...this is gonna put me out for...mgrgrgfurrr..."

"Ugh, why do you do this to yourself? Wear a mask, at least! Special brain, my butt, dozing off so easily..."

"Illmakesur du complanesoonis I remember whodithuissssshhhhh..."

---

????

"The Immutable. Yes, for the sake of convenience, we'll go with that word layout."

"This is beyond foolish. Using it at all, let alone..."

"We have gone long beyond our basic behavior and even our aberrant behavior. Lunacy is now the defining norm. This is no longer a scenario where failure can be tolerated."

"But a random number?'

"Will be as likely to fail as our best agent. Show him in."

"Her, my liege."

"Whatever. She has the capabilities?"

"Last we checked..."

"Then get it in motion."

A door opening.

"...stop."

Footsteps coming to a stop.

"Remove your helmet."

Hesitation, then obediance.

"Sheena Traverse, of Triangle Delivery. You have something you want to deliver, sirs?"