Two years ago I was damn near a vegetable. My parents were approached with a radical treatment theory. Nothing to lose, they went for it. It worked. And here I am."

"What's with the computer interface he mentioned?"

Heaberlin grabbed and massaged his right wrist. "The doctors needed a way to monitor the status of the enhancement. A direct link was the most accurate method. They put one in my wrist and another in the back of my head. After a while, I figured out how to run computers and communicate through the interfaces. Got really good at it."

"That's how you were able to write that code so quickly. That's phenomenal."

Heaberlin nodded.

Big Bill continued. "That game was huge. The first three versions grossed a quarter of a billion dollars. You must be loaded. What in the hell are you doing here?"

"Negative. My operation and recovery cost millions. No way my folks could afford the bill. My old man worked out a deal with a software publisher. I wrote the code for Death Rope and they picked up the tab for the all the medical bills."

Big Bill shook his head. "Man. I can't believe you didn't get any cash out of the deal. What have you been doing for income since then?"

Heaberlin smiled. "Consulting. People pay me to beta test their games. My interface is better than any console. I can pound up to a

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