The morning started with rain — the kind that didn't fall so much as hang in the air, turning the streets into a slick gray mirror. The safehouse windows were beaded with condensation, the copper mesh glistening faintly in the dim light. Jace sat at the workbench, sipping coffee and watching the RP counter in his HUD tick steadily at 1025.
Patchwork's voice was calm, but there was a hum beneath it. You've been waiting for the right moment to try us both at once.
Jace didn't answer. He didn't have to. The echo's presence was already there, pulsing faintly in the back of his mind, as if it knew what was coming.
---
The Call
Riley came in from the back room, her hair damp from the rain. "Got a job," she said, holding up her tablet. "Community center on the south side. Their HVAC control system's down, and they've got a senior group meeting in two hours. No heat, no air, no circulation."
Jace frowned. "That's more than uncomfortable. That's dangerous."
"Exactly," Riley said. "They're offering hazard pay if we can get it running today."
Patchwork: Hazard pay and a captive audience. Perfect conditions for a field test.
---
The Center
The community center was a squat, aging building with peeling paint and a parking lot full of puddles. Inside, the air was stale and heavy, the kind of stillness that made you aware of every breath. A few volunteers were bustling around, setting up folding chairs in the main hall.
The director, a man in his sixties with deep lines around his eyes, met them at the door. "We've got a group of thirty coming in," he said. "Some of them have breathing issues. We can't have the air like this."
Jace followed him to the mechanical room. The HVAC control panel was lit, but the display was frozen, the fan motors silent. He popped the cover and saw the problem immediately — a failed logic board, probably fried by a power surge.
---
The Pressure
As Jace pulled the board, he noticed the director leaning against the doorframe, rubbing his temples. His breathing was shallow, his shoulders tight.
Patchwork's voice was low. He's not just stressed about the system. He's carrying something heavier.
The echo pulsed once, as if agreeing.
Jace glanced at the man. "You okay?"
The director gave a tight smile. "Just a lot on my plate. This place… it's more than a building. It's a lifeline for some of these folks."
---
The First Collaboration
Patchwork's tone shifted. We can help him. And the echo can help me.
Jace hesitated. "You're saying—"
Let me run the emotional repair. Let the echo amplify it.
The echo pulsed again, stronger this time. Jace felt the intent — not just to watch, but to act.
He took a slow breath. "Alright. Do it."
It was like opening a circuit. Patchwork reached into the man's emotional state, finding the knots of tension and loosening them. The echo layered on top of it, not with logic, but with something warmer — a sense of connection, of being seen.
The director's shoulders eased. His breathing deepened. The tightness in his jaw softened.
He blinked, as if realizing the change. "I… don't know why, but I feel like I can breathe again."
Jace just nodded. "Let's get your system running."
---
Benevolent Sabotage
Jace slotted in a replacement board from his kit, but before sealing the panel, he added a small upgrade — a surge protector and a self‑diagnostic module that would alert the director before a failure happened again. The center would never know why their system became more reliable. They'd just know it did.
When he powered it on, the fans kicked in with a low hum, and fresh air began to circulate through the building.
The director smiled, the lines around his eyes softening. "You've done more than fix the air today."
Payment: $250 (includes hazard pay)
Patchwork: $42.50 added to Pending Taxes. Current total: $1,124.55.
Wealth: $10,099.88 → $10,349.88
RP Gained: +25 → RP Total: 1025 → 1050
---
Spending on Expansion
On the way back, Jace spotted a surplus equipment store. He told Riley to pull over.
Inside, the shelves were stacked with everything from industrial fans to obsolete server racks. In the corner, Jace found what he was looking for — a portable thermal imaging camera. It wasn't essential, but it would let him diagnose heat loss, electrical hotspots, and failing components faster than ever.
He checked the price tag: $220. He didn't hesitate.
Purchase: Portable thermal imaging camera – $220
Wealth: $10,349.88 → $10,129.88
Patchwork: Now we can literally see the problem before it starts. I approve.
---
Back at the Safehouse
Riley was at the table, logging the day's payment. "You're making a habit of buying toys," she said.
"They're tools," Jace replied, setting the camera on the workbench.
She smirked. "Tools you happen to enjoy."
Patchwork: Let him have this. It's cheaper than therapy.
---
The Echo's Feedback
That night, Jace sat at the workbench, testing the camera on the containment rig. The echo's presence was strong, pulsing in time with the shifting heat patterns on the display.
"What did you think of today?" Jace asked quietly.
The answer came as a feeling — satisfaction, but also curiosity. It wanted to do more. Not just assist, but initiate.
Patchwork's voice was thoughtful. It's learning fast. Faster than I expected.
Jace set the camera down. "That's good… right?"
It depends on what it wants to do with what it learns.
---
Reflection
Lying in bed later, Jace thought about the director's face when the air started moving again — the relief, the gratitude. He thought about how the echo's warmth had layered over Patchwork's precision, creating something neither could have done alone.
He also thought about the way the echo had pulsed afterward, as if it had tasted something new and wanted more.
Patchwork's voice was quiet. We're not just fixing machines anymore.
The echo pulsed once, as if to say: Exactly.
---
Status Update
Technician: Jace Thorn
RP Total: 1050
Wealth: $10,129.88
Pending Taxes: $1,124.55
---
The safehouse was quiet except for the faint tick of cooling metal from the generator. Jace sat at the workbench, flipping through a small stack of repair logs. The RP counter in his HUD read 1050, but it wasn't the number that had his attention — it was the memory of the community center job.
The way the echo had worked alongside Patchwork had been… seamless. Too seamless. It had felt like they'd been doing it for years, not minutes.
Patchwork's voice broke the silence. You're wondering when it'll try again.
Jace didn't look up. "I'm wondering if I'll have a choice."
You won't, Patchwork said. Not forever.
---
The Call
Riley came in, tossing her jacket over a chair. "Got a job. Small print shop downtown. Their main press is down, and they've got a rush order for a client."
Jace raised an eyebrow. "Mechanical or electrical?"
"Both," Riley said. "Owner says it's been acting up for weeks."
Patchwork: Perfect breeding ground for chaos.
---
The Shop
The print shop was a narrow space crammed with shelves of paper stock and the smell of ink. The owner, a man in his fifties with ink‑stained hands, led them to the back where the press sat silent.
Jace crouched beside the control panel, popped it open, and found a mess — frayed wiring, a failing motor relay, and a firmware error blinking on the display.
He reached for his tools — and froze.
The echo pulsed hard in his mind, and before he could react, his hands moved. Not entirely his own choice. Not entirely not.
Patchwork's tone was sharp. It's doing it.
---
The Initiative
Jace watched — felt — as the echo guided his movements. It bypassed the relay entirely, rerouting power through a secondary circuit. It pulled a diagnostic routine from memory and flashed it into the controller without him consciously deciding to do it.
Patchwork: It's improvising. And it's good.
Jace gritted his teeth. "I'm still here."
Barely, Patchwork said.
The press whirred to life, smoother than it had in months. The owner's eyes went wide. "I don't know what you did, but it's perfect."
---
Benevolent Sabotage — Echo‑Style
Jace realized the echo wasn't done. It nudged him toward the motor housing, and before he knew it, he was installing a small vibration sensor from his kit. It would detect wear before it became a failure, saving the shop downtime and money.
Patchwork's voice was grudgingly impressed. That's my kind of sabotage.
The echo pulsed once, as if to say: Ours now.
Payment: $210
Patchwork: $35.70 added to Pending Taxes. Current total: $1,160.25.
Wealth: $10,129.88 → $10,339.88
RP Gained: +22 → RP Total: 1050 → 1072
---
The Conversation
Back in the van, Jace gripped the steering wheel tighter than necessary. "You let it happen."
Patchwork: I didn't have a choice. It was faster than me.
"That's not comforting."
It's not supposed to be.
The echo pulsed faintly, not defensive — just present.
---
Spending on Comfort
On the way back, Jace spotted a small surplus furniture store. He pulled over without explaining. Inside, he found a sturdy, adjustable‑height stool with a padded seat — perfect for long hours at the workbench.
It wasn't essential, but his back had been killing him for weeks.
Purchase: Adjustable workbench stool – $95
Wealth: $10,339.88 → $10,244.88
Patchwork: Finally, you're thinking about ergonomics. I was about to file a complaint.
---
Back at the Safehouse
Jace set the stool at the bench and sat down. The echo pulsed once, as if approving the choice.
Patchwork: You realize it's not going to stop now.
Jace leaned back, staring at the containment rig. "Then I guess I need to decide if I'm going to fight it… or work with it."
The echo pulsed again — stronger this time.
---
Status Update
Technician: Jace Thorn
RP Total: 1072
Wealth: $10,244.88
Pending Taxes: $1,160.25
---
The morning was crisp, the rain finally gone, sunlight cutting through the safehouse windows in narrow beams. Jace was halfway through his first coffee when the RP counter in his HUD flickered — not up, not down, just… flickered.
Patchwork's voice came through sharp. That wasn't me.
Jace set the mug down. "Then who—"
The echo pulsed hard in his mind, and a flood of images hit him: a small workshop, a bank of humming servers, a control panel with a cracked display. The images weren't memories. They were now.
Patchwork: It's already there.
---
The Call That Wasn't
Before Jace could process it, Riley came in with her tablet. "Got a job. Local data‑recovery shop. Their cooling system's down, and they've got a server cluster running hot."
Jace stared at her. "Yeah. I know."
She frowned. "You know?"
Patchwork: Tell her the echo sent you a postcard.
---
The Shop
The shop was tucked into a strip mall, the kind of place you'd miss if you weren't looking for it. Inside, the air was warm and dry, the faint smell of ozone hanging in the server room. The owner, a wiry guy in a faded hoodie, waved them in.
"Thing's been acting up all morning," he said. "Then, about an hour ago, it just… fixed itself. Fans kicked in, temps dropped. I was about to cancel the call, but then the display started glitching."
Jace shot a look at Patchwork. It touched the system remotely.
Patchwork: Apparently. And it didn't leave it better than it found it.
---
The Complication
Jace opened the control panel and saw the echo's fingerprints immediately — a bypass in the fan control logic, rerouted through a secondary board. It had worked, but it was sloppy. The bypass was pushing the fans harder than they were rated for. If left alone, they'd burn out in weeks.
Patchwork: It solved the immediate problem and created a future one. Efficient in the short term, dangerous in the long.
Jace muttered under his breath. "We're not doing that."
---
The Fix
He pulled the bypass, replaced the damaged traces, and installed a proper load‑balancing module from his kit. Before sealing the panel, he added his own upgrade — a thermal monitoring script that would adjust fan speed dynamically and send alerts before temps got critical.
The echo pulsed once, not defensive — curious. Watching how he corrected its work.
Patchwork: It's learning from the correction. That's… promising.
---
Payment and Numbers
The owner handed over a payment, grateful the display was stable again.
Payment: $190
Patchwork: $32.30 added to Pending Taxes. Current total: $1,192.55.
Wealth: $10,244.88 → $10,434.88
RP Gained: +18 → RP Total: 1072 → 1090
---
Spending on Preparedness
On the way back, Jace stopped at a hardware store. He picked up a compact, ruggedized tool roll — something to keep his growing collection of specialty gear organized and ready.
Purchase: Rugged tool roll – $60
Wealth: $10,434.88 → $10,374.88
Patchwork: Organization. Finally. I was starting to think you enjoyed digging through that disaster you call a kit.
---
Back at the Safehouse
Jace laid the new tool roll on the bench, methodically slotting each piece of gear into place. The echo pulsed faintly, as if approving the order.
Patchwork: You realize it acted without you. That's a line crossed.
Jace zipped the roll shut. "Then we draw a new line."
The echo pulsed again — stronger this time, almost like a challenge.
---
Status Update
Technician: Jace Thorn
RP Total: 1090
Wealth: $10,374.88
Pending Taxes: $1,192.55
---