Authors: Riley Barton
Luna turned down a side street leading out of the Unitech complex’s barrier shield then stopped at a checkpoint to wait for Alex to scan her car’s ID. A moment later the reinforced gate lifted and she passed through the shield out onto the rain-soaked highway leading to New Denver. Once through the shield Luna switched on her windshield’s miniature rain barrier and eased her car up to speed.
This was the most dangerous part of her commute. The road between the Unitech complex and New Denver was open, exposed not only to the torrential downpour but also to attacks from Swampers. The murderous cutthroats usually stayed in the deep swamp, far from major population centers, and Unitech’s security drones did a pretty good job of discouraging the curious. But it was always safer inside the barriers than out.
“Ada, I’d like to order a pizza,” she addressed her headset’s AI unit, keeping her eyes on the foggy road. “Which place is closest along my route home?”
“There are three options along your desired route. In order of distance—nearest to furthest—they are Pizza Port, Papa’s Pizza, and the New Denver Pizzeria. Which would you like me to call?”
“Pizza Port sounds good. Let’s go with that one,” she replied, changing lanes. “Order a large supreme, two diet sodas, and an order of breadsticks to go, please.”
“Very well, Miss Luna. Dialing the requested restaurant.”
“Thanks, Ada,” Luna replied, glancing down at her antique digital wristwatch.
Twelve after nine.
I’ve still got plenty of time.
“Will you be needing anything else, Miss Luna?” Ada asked a few seconds later.
Luna thought about it, then replied, “Actually, yeah, there is. Could you find something good to listen to?”
“Of course. One moment please.”
In a fraction of a second, the car’s stereo came to life, filling the small cabin with the synthesized melodies of an old space rock band.
What could she say? She loved the classics.
Luna signaled and turned off onto an exit leading down to the edge of the mountains toward New Denver. She pulled up to the entrance and waited while the gate lifted to allow her to pass through the energy shield, barely noticing as the hair on her arms and the back of her neck prickled with static electricity. Such was life in New Denver: wet, dark, and staticky.
She turned onto the street leading up to her apartment building and spotted the Pizza Port sign four blocks ahead.
She checked her watch again. 9:21. Right on time.
Luna pulled into the parking lot, grabbed her wallet from her handbag, and slid out of the car, leaving it idling in the parking space. A few minutes later she returned laden with food and a slightly thinner wallet.
She set the steaming pizza box down on the back seat and sat down again behind the wheel. Luna followed the street through the city for about five miles and then made a sharp left hand turn toward the mountains. In the distance she could see the well-lit cluster of sleek skyscrapers that made up the apartment complex where she lived.
Luna pulled into the parking garage beneath her apartment building. The car crept to a stop and she switched off the key. She opened the door and climbed out, taking in a breath of the damp night air before reaching in to retrieve her dinner.
With pizza in hand, she pulled the door closed, checked to see that it was locked, and then walked to the nearby elevators. She hit the button for the fiftieth floor and thirty five seconds later she stepped out, fumbling with her keys. She slid the key into the lock and the door swung open, revealing her cozy three-room apartment.
The lights switched on as she entered. She set the food down on the kitchen’s stainless steel counter and then went to change into something more comfortable. After changing she went into the living room and flopped down on the couch to see what vids would be playing.
She took the A.P.D headset from her pocket and plugged it into a USB port built into the couch’s armrest. The lights flickered for a moment as Ada uploaded her program into the apartment’s circuitry. Before long a life-sized hologram of the AI appeared, and seated herself beside Luna.
Ada—who had taken on the appearance of a young Asian woman, dressed in a pleated skirt and button-up top—crossed her legs and brushed the holographic wrinkles out of her attire.
“Do you require anything, Miss Luna?”
Luna crossed her arms behind her head and arched her spine, stretching out her knotted back muscles with a heavy sigh. “Yeah, could you see what movies are playing on the Classics channel?”
Ada brushed back her short hair and pulled up a holographic chart, sifting through the titles and play times of every film in a matter of seconds.
While Ada recited the titles of the available movies, Luna stared out the apartment’s large windows at the billowing black clouds and scattered lightning strikes of a gathering storm.
“ …
Waterworld
. Released on July 28, 1995. Staring Kevin Costner. The film takes place on earth after the polar icecaps have melted, covering the world in an endless ocean, leaving mankind to struggle for survival on floating cities—”
“Skip that one,” Luna replied. “We’ve already seen it a million times, and Bridget never understands it. What’s the next one?”
“
2012
. Released on November 30, 2009. Staring John Cusack. The film takes place in the year 2012. Which, according to the ancient Mayan calendar, was supposedly the end of all time—”
Just then the doorbell rang, causing both human and AI to turn.
“That’s Bridget. Come in!” Luna said, rising to her feet. “Ada, polarize the theater system, and go with the film
2012
. I’ve never seen that one.”
“As you wish, Miss Luna. Polarizing theater system, and preparing film.”
The windows darkened until they were no longer transparent. They then lit with the preview screen common to all of the old vids, bathing the apartment in green light. Having completed her assignment, Ada’s shimmering figure shrank and then vanished, returning to the confines of the apartment’s circuitry.
The apartment door swung open, and Luna hurried to greet her friend.
“Hey, Bridget!”
“Luna! How have you been? It seems like forever since we’ve had a girls’ night!” Bridget exclaimed, giving her friend a quick hug.
“I’ve been okay. Really busy with my research and really tired ‘cause of all the long hours. But other than that I’m doing great. How about you?”
Bridget smiled widely and brushed back a strand of strawberry blonde hair. “Well, since you brought it up … I just got promoted! You’re looking at Mr. Saul Edgard’s new secretary!”
“Wow! That’s a huge step from being a lobby receptionist!” Luna exclaimed, patting her friend on the shoulder.
“Wait, there’s more!” Bridget’s green eyes sparkled, and her smile grew even wider. “I just met the greatest, most sweetest guy at work today! He’s so smart, and funny, and handsome! You’d love him! But don’t even
think
about loving him, he’s mine!” Her eyes narrowed into slits and she pointed a slender finger at Luna in mock fury.
“Don’t worry, Bridget. I won’t take him,” Luna laughed. “So what’s this guy’s name?”
Bridget removed her raincoat and hung it beside the door, revealing the black pinstriped suit and soft pink blouse she wore beneath. “His name is Keith Tagawa. He’s one of those security agent guys at Unitech. He’s one of the best of the best, and he asked me—
me
—to go out with him tomorrow! Can you believe it? It’s going to be so
totally
amazing! I can’t wait!”
Luna grinned and handed her friend a plate before serving herself. The two women walked around the kitchen island and sat down on the couch just before the last preview came on.
“So,” Bridget said, lowering her voice, “What about you? Do you have a boyfriend yet? Or are you still going it alone?”
Luna bit her lip. She’d known Bridget long enough to anticipate her bubbly friend’s customary question. She just hadn’t expected it quite so early in the evening.
“Um …
no. Not yet,” Luna replied, casually. “I mean, I’m good where I am right now. I don’t see any reason to rush into a serious relationship, you know?”
She knew Bridget didn’t know—taking things slow was not in Bridget’s vocabulary—it just sounded better to Luna to add the rhetorical question. It made her sound less like she was trying to avoid the topic—which she was.
However, she really had told Bridget the truth. Well, most of it anyway. Deep down inside, she still carried the wounds from the many painful breakups she’d had during her short life—the last of which had been by far the worst. The truth of the matter was that she was still very,
very
much afraid of giving her fragile heart to someone again only to have it smashed into a million tiny pieces when they discovered the truth about her condition.
“Hey, if waiting for Mr. Right works for you, then that’s great,” Bridget laughed. “But I’m not going to wait around twiddling my thumbs. Believe me, I know love when I see it. And its name is Keith Tagawa!”
Luna laughed dryly, pushing back the painful memories swelling inside her. She then forced an expression of sincere concern, “I just hope you don’t get hurt. A broken heart is a hard thing to fix. Trust me.”
Before either one of them could speak further, the previews ended, leaving the two of them to eat while they tried to focus on the hundred-year-old movie.
After the film was over, they talked and cleaned up the remains of their dinner. Bridget—who was just as confused by the film as always—bombarded Luna with questions while they washed and put away the dishes. The two of them continued to talk for another hour before Bridget finally decided to call it a night.
“I’ll be seeing you, Luna,” she said, donning her raincoat. “We should do this again next week. Then I can tell you all about my date with Keith!”
“I’ll see what my schedule’s like, but that should work. Drive safe.”
“I will! Good night, Luna!”
Luna waved after her friend, waiting until she was safely in the elevator before closing the apartment door.
She sure was talkative tonight.
Luna crossed her arms and looked around the kitchen. Everything was tidy.
Good. No chores for tomorrow morning.
“Ada, can you pull the blinds for me, please.”
“Of course, Miss Luna,” the AI replied smoothly, darkening the windows until they were a solid screen of black.
“Thanks, Ada. Good night.”
“Good night, Miss Luna. Sleep well.”
Luna washed her face with warm water and brushed her teeth before changing into her midnight-blue pajamas. She made her way into her bedroom, switching off the lights behind her. Closing the door, she glanced down at the antique book resting on the nightstand beside her bed. She had always loved the feeling of old books: the weight of the cover, the way it felt to turn a page made of
actual
paper. And this particular novel was just getting good. For a moment she considered trying to squeeze in a chapter, but then she saw the clock and her heart sank. It was already well past midnight.
“Well, I guess it’s probably a good thing I don’t have to be back in the lab until ten.”
She yawned and crawled into her queen-sized bed. Reading could wait. After all, the book wasn’t going anywhere. It would be there in the morning, waiting right where she’d left it.
Her heavy eyelids fluttered and closed almost as soon as her head hit the pillows.
Chapter 2
Security Chief Carl Landers placed the small shot glass on his desk and refilled it. “What’s our status, Alex?”
“Area is secure, Chief. All laboratories are locked down for the night. The last of the research staff have been gone for 15.5 minutes.”
“And what about the factories? Are all the workers clocked out for the day?”
“Affirmative. All bio-signatures within secure sectors are those of Agency staff only.”
Landers ran his hands through his graying hair and stared at the holographic displays lighting up the wall across from his desk; various readouts and security monitors flashed before his weary eyes. Everything checked out. But everything had checked out on
that
night too.
“It’s been twenty years, Alex. Twenty years on the dot,” he said, emphasizing his words by tapping his index finger on the desk’s polished black surface. “Hard to believe he’s been dead that long.”
He lifted the glass to his lips and quickly downed its contents.
Just then the office comm system beeped and a woman’s voice drifted up from the speakers: “Sir. Agent Tagawa is here, and he wishes to speak with you. Immediately, if possible. Should I tell him to come back in the morning, sir?”
Landers eyed the comm for a moment, searching for the
talk
button.
“Um … no. That’s all right, Rosa. Send him in now. I’ve got the time.”
The office door slid open and a young man walked in and stopped before the Chief’s desk. Landers stood to his full height and clasped his hands behind his back, surveying Agent Keith Tagawa with his piercing gaze.
The young agent was fit and clean shaven. He had short black hair and dark eyes, and his black suit was immaculate. At a glance Landers knew Tagawa to be a by-the-book agent who would pay close attention to even the most minute of details—whether in a case or in his personal life. He reminded the chief of his second in command, Lieutenant Manning, back when Manning had been a raw recruit.