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The Ryujin of the Ninkyo Dantai

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“I hear you met the Ryujin?” Sam looked across the table at me. We’d taken to having breakfast together daily in the company diner.

“Is that who she was?” I asked.

“That was the Dragon Lady in the flesh.” Sam said. “She is very influential in these parts.”

“So it would seem.” I agree, sipping my coffee “So it would seem. Just my luck, the mob.”

“Not exactly. Her organization is similar to the Japanese Ninkyo Dantai,“ Sam said. “That means Chivalrous Organizations and she is that. She’s got an iron clad code of honor. The Ninkyo Dantai are known for their strict codes of conduct but are not necessarily criminal. Neither is the Ryujin. She just cuts through a lot of red tape to look after her people. She could be your best friend or your worst nightmare. There are a number of missing thugs who have learned that lesson of late.”

“Besides all that,” Sam said with a grin. “She’s your boss. I’m the manager but she’s the owner.”

“Oh Shit.” I said quietly.

“It gets better.” Sam’s grin was even bigger. “She’s my aunt.”

“Double Shit.” I said again. “ Diarrhea even...full blown Dysentery. Well I guess I’d better pack. It was a nice job while it lasted.”

“Not at all.” Sam was suddenly as serious as a heart attack in a nursing home. I could tell that he was dead serious. “She called me last night. We had a nice long chat. She said that her visit was a test. You passed it with flying colors. Very damn few living humans can do that. I’m proud of you boy.”

“Do you recommend her?” I asked, just as seriously. “I mean that’s a slam dunk question but I need to hear you say it.”

“I do.” Sam replied.

“Good enough.” I said.

“I’ll call her right away.” Sam told me. “She’s waiting for the call. Shall I tell her you’ll be free in about an hour?”

I nodded. What the Sam Hill had just happened?

---

later

I was waiting when the Ryujin and her entourage returned. Something about them was very different. They weren’t nearly as intimidating nor frightening.

“Make up.” I blurted out. “You wore makeup the last time.”

“Very astute young man” the Ryujin said with the barest trace of a smile. “You are very observant. Now, pleasantries over, I believe that you have some drones to show me?”

“Yes ma’am.” I replied.

“ I notice that your dragon puppet doesn’t seem to require your attention. I find that to be VERY interesting. Would you tell me about that please.”

“Mind control” I said. I wasn’t willing to tell her, yet, that Elvira was a person. I wasn’t willing to tell her, yet, that Elvira and I shared the same brain.

She fixed her gaze on me. I think she knew that I had secrets. “Tell me more about this mind control please.”

I did, and I would keep them until I decided not too. I reached into my pocket and withdrew a small gold chain. “This is a neural loop. When worn around your neck it will interface, non-invasively, to your brain.” My four visitors were impassive. No perceptible reaction.

“It senses what you want the puppet to do and directs it to do so.” I continued. Did I note just a touch of longing in the eyes of the ogres? “You can see through the puppets eyes, hear through its ears. In a sense, you ARE the puppet. It’s a fully immersive tele-operative environment.”

“They’re amputee’s just as you are.” Elvira told me mind to mind. You got to love that corpus callosum. “They have metal legs. Horribly uncomfortable I would assume. Perhaps they’d be candidates for mono-wheels?”

“That is perfectly acceptable.” the Ryujin said.

“May I assume that you want some puppets?” I asked her. “By the way, I call them Avatars....or ‘little dragons”

The Ryujin smiled. “A more respectable name than ‘puppet’?”

I nodded slightly. I barely tilted my head.

“Yes I believe that I do. One for each of us please.” She stated.

“It will take me some time to build them.” I stated. “And I will need certain measurements before I start.”

“Certainly” The Ryujin said “ Do you have a tape? Sally can measure me.”

Sally?” I said. I noticed that the youngest one in the group looked different. The first time they visited she looked more oriental than she did now and I distinctly recalled that she was called “Tatsu”

“Yup.” The dragon lady said “ She wore make-up too. She played the part of my great grand daughter. Now about those measurements?”

“That’s not how it works. I’m afraid that they are not that type of measurement.” I told her. “I’m referring to mental variations of your brainwaves.”

I handed her the necklace. “The neuro loop communicates to the Avatars via a technique that I call QECom. That’s short for Quantum Entanglement Communications. As far as I can tell it can not be detected by anyone else. The process is encrypted using your DNA as a key so the link is totally secure. When you put the neuro loop around your neck it will take a DNA sample to make a crypto-key. That will sting, somewhat like that of a bee or a wasp. Then it will measure certain functions of your brain.”

“When that is complete, I will take the data, and the key and insert it into my fabrication machine. The machine will proceed to grow an Avatar. It takes a few days. My machine builds the Avatar atom by atom, quite time consuming.” I told her.

“How many of these neuro loops have you made?” The Ryujin asked me.

“Besides mine?” I mused. “I’ve made a dozen or so but yours would be the second one activated. I’ve provided a number of devices to a young man that I met in a bookstore. His was the first.”

“How was he recommended to you?” The Ryujin asked. “I’m not being critical. I truly want to know.”

“He’s a reader. He reads Science Fiction. He’s also a wounded warrior. That makes him a member of my tribe.” I said. “He and I drank many gallons of coffee in a bookstore one night, we discussed everything from Atoms to Zanzibar. We got to know each other very well.”

The Ryujin stared at me for a moment, then shook her head slightly. “Very well.” She said. “We’ll all take one please.”

“Yes Ma’am” I said and I provided additional neuro loops. One for each Ogre and one for Sally.

“Cody and Tommy are going to be Soooo Jealous.” She said as she put it on...

“Ware the sting” I reminded them. I wondered what THAT was about. I imagined that I would find out in due time. “After the sting it will need a few minutes to do its analysis. Then it will link to my server and transfer the data. When the basic avatar is grown I’ll notify you via QECom. Don’t be shocked when I do. I’ll be talking to you mind to mind. It’ll take a few days though but once you receive your avatar you can modify it to your own personal preferences.”

“Very Good.” The Ryujin said.

I served them coffee while the measurements were being completed.

“Those weren’t real pig stickers were they?” I asked Marc while we were waiting.

Marc and Captain grinned. “Absolutely not. We might hurt ourselves on a real blade. One of my buddies made them for us. Out of Styrofoam, Bondo and spray paint. They looked real at a distance didn’t they?”

“They certainly did” I replied. “Very realistic work. It speaks of years of practice.”

“Years and Years. I think Cody might be six.” Captain said.

“Eight” Marc corrected his brother.

I blinked at that,that name.... ‘Cody’... again.

Shortly thereafter, the brain scan was complete. I collected the data chips and the Ryujin and her group departed.

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To Be Continued

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I hope you are enjoying this
Yarn

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In my Blog I write about,
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---

The Hobo Picture is a Public Domain image from
Samantha at the Worlds Fair
by Josiah Allen's Wife (Marietta Holley)
Illustrated by
Baron C. De Grimm published by
Funk and Wagnall's Company 1893
Unless noted
All other Illustrations are from
Pixabay

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