"No," Zoe frowns, "and yes." She turns to face Bert; it's about time she tells him. She doesn't want to let go of his hand as she does, but she's completely prepared for him to pull away.

This is so far from the kind of technology he knows; she is.

"There used to be another Zoe," she explains, holding his gaze, her voice unwavering. She is doing this. "She copied her mind to make me, a double, in a virtual reality. This place was one among many, in that reality. This body," she squeezes his hand gently, to emphasize what she means, and knows that this is when he might pull away, "was made by her parents - our parents - so I could exist in the material world. It's cybernetic." She isn't sure whether he knows the word, so she makes it as simple as she can, "A robot."