After securing blood and tissue samples from Mari for tissue regeneration, Mac met with Veronica and Anastasia to give them the good news with their healer John present.
"Operation should be no issue, so after the bioprinter has generated enough stem cells for regeneration I can begin regrowing new vertebrae for installation. That should be done sometime this evening where I'll begin operating. Given there are no complications Mari can start learning to walk again sometime tomorrow around noon."
While Mac was describing what he thought of a routine procedure, Veronica's eyes seemed to grow in size as she realised how fast Mac could cure her daughter.
"T-tomorrow!?"
"Yeah, this is a routine procedure, so it should only take a couple of hours. Oh, and while I'm fixing her spine I'll also remove a small obstruction in her left ventricle, that should allow her heart to beat at full power too."
(I had my spine regenerated so many times during my childhood, so what's the big deal?)
Forgetting that he wasn't at home for a moment, Mac remembered himself when John made an earnest request.
"I would very much like to observe this procedure, please allow me to spectate."
"Yeah, that's fine as long as you don't touch anything and properly disinfect."
While dealing with tissue contamination was manageable, it was another headache he would like to avoid.
"Of course, I'll follow whatever directives you deem necessary."
Giving Anastasia and Veronica a bit of time to celebrate amongst themselves, Mac went to check on his patient again, finding her in the middle of a meal and much more well behaved.
"Ah, Mac. Welcome back."
(I need to make a good impression, for big sis' sake.)
While Mari was ecstatic at the thought of getting to walk again, the real reason for her switch in attitude was her older sister. While Mari's mom and dad had started giving up hope Anastasia would ever wed, Mari remained optimistic that any potential partner just needed to be able to see her older sister's charm, something Mac clearly had.
(The real question is if he's serious or not.)
Still, Mari was realistic in the estimation of her sister's chances at finding love, so now that a potential suitor had presented himself it didn't matter if he was an alien.
(I'll make you proud, mom, dad!-)
"Hyia!-"
Silently making a declaration as she completely ignored Mac, Mari was snapped out of her delusions with a (gentle) flick to the forehead.
"Finally awake? You zoned out."
Not wanting to waste his words, Mac waited for Mari to actually pay attention to what he was saying before starting again.
"Like I tried to tell you before, the surgery will start this evening. From your point of view you'll fall asleep, then wake up cured, any questions?"
"Eh?... Just like that?"
Mari had expected a long, grueling recovery, so telling her that she was just going to wake up cured was a bit of a head scratcher.
"Yeah, just like that, for you at least. I'll be poking around inside your body, replacing some things, removing other things and regrowing everything else. Your new spare parts are already being printed downstairs."
With the level of technology Mac wielded the human body wasn't that different from a menial machine, sure the brain was sacred and a tiny bit more complicated but everything could be repaired like a simple machine, just by procuring spare parts.
"Printed?"
As expected Mari didn't understand anything Mac was saying, so he figured a visual aid was needed.
"Anastasia? Could you help me here?"
Talking to Mari's older sister who was standing just outside the door, Mari was surprised when her sister emerged.
"Big sis?"
"Yeah, I'm here."
Slightly perturbed that she had been spotted, Anastasia emerged from her hiding hole. While Anastasia didn't trust Mac, she believed his interests were aligned and he stood to benefit from helping, but as an older sister she still felt like she needed to keep a watchful eye.
"What do you need Mac?"
"Hold the doors open, we're going downstairs."
""Eh?""
Mac acted before either sister could react, with a quick swoop he picked up Mari and appeared to think he could just walk around with her, like a prop.
"Abserlutely not!"
Anastasia was the first to act against this affront to her family honor. Closing the range almost instantly, she freed Mari from Mac's hands, choosing to carry her sister herself.
"Or you can carry her, shees. Just follow me then."
Leaving the room first as he saw he wasn't being appreciated, Mac started preparing visual aids downstairs remotely.
Although it had happened fast and was over in a moment, Mari felt embarrassment creep up on her face as she meekly apologized.
"Sorry for taking your spot, big sis- AW!"
"Stop with the nonsense."
"... Okay."
Immediately slapping some sense into her little sister, Anastasia felt like she wanted to scream as she silently followed after Mac with Mari in her arms.
(THE FUCK YOU MEAN, 'MY SPOT'!?)
Heading downstairs with the sisters in tow, Mac entered one of the guest rooms he had commandeered for surgery preparation. The inside of the room had been emptied of furniture by the house servants, as well as Mac's drones to fulfill the role of a covert medical centre. Now the inside of the room was filled with high tech medical equipment, opaque plastic polymer containers filled with biological precursors, mat black portable processing units humming with heat for DNA analysis and clear glass containers where robotic arms the size of needles were printing fresh 'replacement parts' directly into protective gel.
"Sorry about that John, I'll take things from the top again."
From the time Mac had been talking with Veronica and Anastasia, Mac had given the family healer John a tour of his operation via drone, but now as new guests had arrived for the tour he needed to take things from the top again.
"No worries."
"W-what is all this?"
Seeing not only strange looking medical equipment for the first time, but also the human type drone Mac had used as a proxy made Mari a bit apprehensive, but Mac quickly started explaining.
"That standing next to John is a human type drone, I use them as extra hands and minds since I was the only person sent on this mission."
"You're all alone?"
Having successfully redirected Mari's focus, Mac continued.
"Yeah, I'm the only person sent to this world, or star system really. Anyway, that's a drone, you can think of them as a golem. I can act and speak through, while talking with you and Anastasia I had a conversation with John here about my world's medical technology."
Walking over to the first step in the process, the sample analyser, Mac started his explanation of the process he deemed to be routine.
"First step is the samples I secured from you Mari. Blood contains a special marker called deoxyribonucleic acid, or just DNA, it informs your body how to build and maintain itself. I took samples from you to extract this genetic information, then reprocess it."
Seeing his audience's (save for John who was taking notes) eyes glaze over, Mac was forced to dumb things down again.
"Think of your body as a machine, the smallest parts of that machine are something called a 'cell', this machine in of itself acts on instructions, which is the DNA."
Seeing Anastasia and Mari at least somewhat followed this explanation, Mac continued.
"This machine here takes your blood cells and extracts this DNA, before rewriting its instruction set and using it to create cells in the next step, outside your body."
"... So these things that were part of my body are now… Growing? Outside of my body, inside that thing?"
Somewhat following along with Mac's explanation, Mari had complicated feelings looking at the blob of… Something suspended inside the machine.
"Exactly. Starting with this blood, I then use its instructions, the DNA, to build new cells that will replace the nerves and damaged bones inside your body."
Skipping over stem cell production and the intricacies of cell reprograming, Mac moved on to one of 3 vats of vaguely blue gel where a brand new vertebra was being printed from stem cells by bio printers.
"Using those reprogrammed cells, I print new replacement parts for installation."
"Those things are going inside me?"
Looking at the vats of gel with vaguely familiar bones inside it, Mari didn't know whether to feel impressed or sick.
"Yeah. To repair a machine you find out what's wrong with it, I did that by examining you, then I figured out how to replace the bad parts and started producing replacements. Simple, right?"
"Not exactly. You're basically comparing Mari to a machine."
Feeling her anger starting to boil up, Anastasia knew Mac was awkward, but this was pushing it.
"No, you misunderstand. Mari's body is a machine, but she isn't… Is the concept of a soul common here? That's the best way to explain it. Mari is Mari, which uses her body, but the body is a separate thing which I am now repairing."
While Mac didn't really believe in the existence of souls or any of that nonsense, explaining ego, brain function in relation to the self was a pain, so he side stepped using the idea of a soul as a shorthand.
"I come from a world where modifying the body to fit the soul is commonplace, did you really think I was born with this arm?"
Holding out his left arm, Mac activated his built-in gravity engine, letting his fingers float freely along with parts of his palm and forearm.
"That… Makes sense, I guess."
"Woah, what is that!?"
While Anastasia had seen Mac's arm transform before and so barely accepted his explanation and excuse, Mari was surprised once again.
"It's a gravity engine, do you want one installed?"
"What does it d-"
"NO! ABSOLUTELY NOT!"
-
(What the hell are they doing over there?)
Catching the faint sound of screaming with her sharp hearing, Tia continued her presentation of goods.
"And this is a fabric close to silk, we're able to produce it in any kind of colour you'd want."
"This is quite something."
Receiving the sample swatch of fabric, Veronica marveled at the material's softness and consistent colour as Tia continued with the sell.
"This fabric is also very durable, try stretching it out."
"Really?"
"Yeah, give it a tug."
As a result of Mac's need for perfection, the sample Tia showed today was resistant to filth, breathable and flexible while still being able to maintain its shape.
"... This is one remarkable material."
Stretching the fabric like Tia had instructed, Veronica found it to be far more durable than anything she had seen before.
"In that case the cost must be obscene."
Presented with nothing but upsides, Veronica was prepared to hear that the price was as outrageous as the product.
Only, the price was the truly insane thing about the products Mac produced by the literal ton.
"It is obscene, yes, but just not in the way you're expecting."
Presenting Veronica with prices that were only a tenth of what the matriarch expected, Tia was met with suspicion until she started explaining.
"Mac produces these products autonomously without any labor costs, materials are also essentially free to him as he controls extraction too."
In addition to the trio of cruisers and small fleet of tenders Mac had brought along with him he had also traveled with mobile raw material extraction and processing facilities. While the majority of these production facilities were currently tied up building him a ground branch, spare capacity and the relative simplicity of the goods sold by Red import consortium meant that they could be produced to simply keep the forges warm and avoid downtime.
"I can see why you've already run into competition lowering themselves to dirty tricks."
Veronica had already received reports of market disruptions, mostly in the coal trade, and she figured that other reports she had received when her intelligence agents started looking into things could now be cooperated.
"... Yeah, there have been a few problems… I wasn't aware you were informed on such matters, Madam."
"Don't underestimate my family's intelligence apparatus."
Putting down the fabric sample, Veronica crossed her arms and decided to speak frankly.
"But it isn't because you want me to buy these products you're showing them… You're after a ledger of trade, correct?"
"... That is correct."
With the other party having seen completely through her intentions, Tia also decided to drop the pretence.
"In that case I suggest we table these talks for the moment. Talk is talk, I would like to see actual results from Mac before moving forward."
Given Mac could deliver on his other promise to cure her daughter Mari, Veronica was ready to leverage her family's influence, even without the agreement of her husband. Still, she wouldn't be swayed by empty promises.
(I guess this is the best I can hope for…)
Seeing the opposition had bugged down and refused to move further, Tia breathed a silent sigh.
(You better not fuck this up Mac, or I'm afraid it'll be both of our heads on the line.)