Jerry pondered the question for a moment, then turned to his twin and replied "Well, now that you mention it...can we give ourselves bigger muscles again? Maybe not 'beefcake'-level, obviously, but still..."
"Geez." Josh quietly groaned. "I knew you liked having a body like a junior bodybuilder, but I didn't think you'd miss it THAT much! I mean, you even kissed what was then your only bicep and said 'C'est la vie'."
"True, on both counts." Jerry retorted. "But by that same token, that was before we were both 'plumbed and wired' like natural-born conjoined twins. Heck, we both still went by 'Edward' back then."
"Points taken." Josh replied, amazed at just how far he and his twin had come in such a short time.
"Like I said, bro, I'm not asking for 'beefcake'-level muscles," Jerry continued, feeling the muscles of his front arm with his rear hand, "...but maybe I'd like a little more meat on our bones: it's not like I want us to be able to bench-press a car or dead-lift a fully-loaded bus."
"That's true..." Josh replied. "So...how much muscle mass did you want to put on?"
"Not too terribly much." said Jerry. "Maybe somewhere in the neighborhood of...10 to 15 pounds' worth?"
"'Not asking for 'beefcake'-level muscles', huh?" Josh asked back, quizzically raising an eyebrow.
"Hey, at least I'm not asking to have the Chronivac tack on us another 20+ pounds of muscle." Jerry retorted.
"All right then, how about this: we both take turns making minor changes to ourselves...'enhancements', if you will?," Josh asked. "And I'd say adding on more muscle definitely falls under that heading."
"Fair enough." Jerry replied. "But the changes we make from here on out will only add or change something, not subtract."
"Agreed." said Jerry. "You mind if I go first?"
"Not at all, bro." Josh replied. "Let's see what you can do."
"All right, then." said Jerry. "Wizard, please add an additional 10 pounds of muscle to us, distributed evenly across our body."
"As you wish, Jeremy." the program wizard replied. "Adding additional muscle mass now."
Both twins felt a warm tingling sensation as their musculature grew to the new setting, the skin of their shared body slowly adjusting itself to match. When it was done, Jerry turned to Josh and asked "Well, bro...what do you think?"
"Not bad." Josh replied. "But I think I can do one better...though I think we might want to sit down for my add-on."
"Ooh...a mental enhancement." Jerry retorted as he raised an eyebrow, his curiosity piqued. "I'm game."
"All right." said Josh. After taking a moment to sit down, Josh turned to the computer and said "Wizard, please increase our individual IQs to 130."
"Using a single IQ test or several?" the program wizard asked.
"Nothing based on any one specific test...Just a general, across-the-board IQ boost for each of us." Josh replied.
"As you wish, Joshua." the program wizard replied. "Commencing mental augmentation now."
Both twins closed their eyes and let the process take hold, gritting their teeth from the discomfort of having their minds further rewired. As soon as the discomfort fully subsided, Josh turned to his twin and asked "How you feelin', bro?"
"Smarter, actually." Jerry replied. "Maybe not 'Einstein'- or even 'Hawking'-level smart, but quite a bit smarter than before. You?"
"Same, on all counts." said Josh. "You wanna take a break, or keep going?"
"No, I'm good." Jerry replied. "But as for what I've got planned for our next change, well...we definitely might want to stay sitting down for this one."
"Okay, bro..." Josh nervously asked. "...what did you have in mind?"
Jerry turned to the computer and asked "Wizard, could you bring up the updated distribution list of our organs, please?"
"Of course, Jeremy." the program wizard replied.
The updated organ distribution list reappeared on screen:
List & Distribution of Organs for Jeremy & Joshua Platte:
2 heads
2 spines, merging at coccyx and joined at thorax by sections of ribs
2 completely separate spinal cords
4 arms (one pair set behind the other on separate shoulder joints; all four arms and shoulders fully capable of moving independently of one another, with each twin controlling the arms and shoulders on their side of the body)
1 broad ribcage with 2 sternums and fully-formed bridging ribs
3 nipples (all nonfunctional)
2 hearts in a shared circulatory system (nutrition, respiration, medicine taken by either affects both)
4 lungs with the medial lungs fully fused into a shared "super-lung"
1 diaphragm with well-coordinated involuntary breathing
2 stomachs
2 gallbladders
1 liver, both lobes enlarged and elongated
Y-shaped small intestine, which experiences a double peristalsis at the juncture
1 large intestine (one colon)
1 navel
4 kidneys: 2 left, 2 right
1 bladder
1 set of reproductive organs (each twin contributing a testicle that feeds into a single penis shared between both twins)
2 separate half-sacrums, which converge distally
1 slightly broad pelvis
2 legs
"Bro?" Josh asked nervously. "What are you thinking?"