Days went on and time speared forward waiting for none. Another day was coming to a close with opportunities opening over a drink. For once Lena wore a genuine smile across the table. Dusk was at hand with orange glimmers through the glass of the greasy gears, louder than average with the usual headcount for the most part. Strider for once showed hesitation at his counter customers and Lena who ordered more than they could handle. Alcohol reflected on her face with the gleam of her guest.
"Come on, pour one more!" dormant among the heads of balding businessmen looking for an escape was a new face that the bartender never met. A woman dressed in a black suit with red frame glasses matching her lips and heels. Hair like night trapped within a bun, a nice disposition from fair skin, and a figure that stole the gaze of many. Ailiya was her name; Strider never saw a human handle as much rum as her. Lena giggled with the woman's arm stretched across her. She was dressed in a similar red suit and skirt touching her knees. Hair tied back and even the nasty wires from her augmentation were tucked in place for a beautiful finish, "Hurry up," Ailiya was focused on not being sober and drinking the greasy gear bar out of business. Though that was second on Strider's mind. The document that laid on the counter stole the forefront.
A contract. Black Lang's Mining Corporation was an up-and-coming purveyor in Cnoc Dubh, it was a battle for miners to acquire land for digging in these locations making opportunities like this rare. Word of mouth told Strider that the company made several orders from Doubhain robotic labs and from his homeland as well- not good things. His side-eyed discovery while reading the tabs of all the tables revealed that the contract was a 'logistics position'. Lena's specialty next to military work, "Take it easy huh, how are you gonna make your new employee see this side of you so soon!" Lena joked with a sip of her own. A pen sat between her fingers prepared to sign.
"Yeah yeah, alright I should go over what this position has, shouldn't I?" Ailiya stated with mug rested, "Hmm, let's see," she rubbed the side of her head. There was a click, "Well the position won't be really labor intensive since you're just operating and repairing a ton of machines in the underlevels of Cnoc….eh forget about it let's head to the office after and we'll discuss it there!" Ailiya cheered demanding more. She acted charismatic and hungry like any other, but to the trained they saw deeper intentions behind fish eyes. "You already passed the background check and the boss loves you."
"Hmm," Strider never let his eye off the woman. The clock stuck six calling for the end of Strider's day job, "Hey neighbor, heading out soon so take care of yourself," he forewarned with a wave. Quick to untie his apron Strider tossed the old thing under the counter, allowing his droid assistant to take over. ZZ-1100 or Zeze was a minute bot the size of a child with tracks instead of wheels and primeval stick arms that resembled grabbers of a claw machine. Units such as these were a collector's item, anyone would pay a million drams for a piece of archaic technology. Before he left a word whispered in Zeze's….ear? "Make sure to sober up the regular."
Dead fish eyes were observed from the unit's master, "Alright, later you buncha drunks!" a slick swing of the arm combed Strider's untamed hair as the crowds roared for his exit. One job over and another began the instant his foot met the outside world. Poor old Strider had lips stained in smoke and another cigarette didn't help whatsoever; marrow and what sat under his sleeves throbbed, "Phew...let's get this over with," his eyes lurched to the sky and the peak of his roof. Behind his old store was a ladder. Rungs wasted away with water and heat with some gone missing, still did the job. Carefully he scaled the wall to the rounded peak of his roof concealed behind the giant neon sign. A sigh left his lips at the sound of clanks and thought of his contractors, but he greeted them with courtesy. "Yo, assholes. Sorry to keep you waiting."
Dynamo Legbuster and Tome Dragnok awaited basking in the golden rays with a cigar in the half-asleep dragon's mouth, "Damn right you should be," Tome spat, "Got me wasting an hour," when he scratched his broad chin bits of scale flaked off. Strider laughed off the awkward moment, "Didn't think you're the guy who Legbuster told me about," a tension rose with the dragon staring down the man with his shirt unbuttoned. Well, in hindsight anyone would stare at such a chest. Science met flesh in an unholy combination.
The entirety of Strider's chest was metal. Tungsten and steel held together his organs and acted as skin with a surgical glow of blue. Tubes and wires pretended to be veins while they connected to the real ones; features such as ports for extra limbs also existed near his armpits. But his arms were a real prize. Modern mechanics combined with the old knowledge created two digits longer than humanly achieved and remained slimmed. Exterior consisting of cosmik and top quality ballistic glass held together artificial muscles. That alone wasn't the reason to give it praise, but the glitter within. C.C. 5 Hungry Bug. Updated throughout the years the grandfather of nanomachine technology, hungry bug remained as one of the few C.C. units to stand the test of time. However, its uses diversified from their original, the metal nanomachines were still a monster that left behind nothing once the hunger began. C.C 5 of this quality was almost impossible to find and maintain."Didn't expect to meet someone as high as you either."
Strider's arm stuck out. Dynamo rested a sack that jingled when moved, "There, half upfront," he giggled while the others stared at him.
"Not even a briefcase?" both questioned their third partner in crime.
"What? Do I look like I have briefcase money?" he outlasted, "There's almost eight hundred drams in that he can buy one himself," his fingers twiddled. "That and it was a pain in the neck to get that much cash in physical coins, so I had to get back at you for demanding it in person…."
"Fine, just leave it behind there and I'll get Zeze to pick it up later," Strider whined once all limbs were stretched. Day turned to night and neon burned bright in the city of bioluminescent and nuclear light. Rowdy customers parted from the abode below for the shadier areas of the city, "Hmm…" one pair spotted was Lena and her new boss. "Hey, Legbuster, what do you think about that chick? Ailiya. Never heard about her in Giganto."
His glare made the other two flinch. Dynamo's eyes weren't under analysis, but lacking all but a hint of blue pinning down the stranger in the crowds, "Dunno, but Lena isn't that dumb," he gave credit, "She'll be fine, though might be in a tough spot I don't know….seeing where they're headed," a black taxi at this hour only went to one location he could think of. No other district had cab drivers with a dark frame and green tinted windows. "We're close to there anyways, aren't we?"
"That's where the warehouse is," Tome confirmed, "We got two spots to hit and that's the closest," he armed himself for the worst as well. Goods confiscate from smugglers now doing time in Skylandria were in his hands, not to mention the toys their contractee brought.
"Railgun with sniper attachments, EMP minibombs, Explosive putty, hungry bugs low on power. What more can you ask for?"
"Damn, if we weren't on the same side I'd be sending you for a trial right about now…" Tome couldn't help but gawk at hoplophile galore, "Shit, get me in contact with some of your purveyors and we're golden."
A handshake settled the tension between the parties. Bonds born through love for destruction met with a lazy glare, "Kids," Dynamo scoffed, "It's getting late, let's get moving before my old gears rust over!"
After yelling at the oldest of the group the trio set off. Hops between the roofs and traversed under cover of neon glares where few could trace. Little to say another duo hopped from place to place in a similar manner. Ailiya with Lena and contract in hand, signed both in physical print and digital. Smiles plastered on their faces as they ran through the crowds, "Oh damn do my feet look funny?" Ailiya's sudden jerk tugged Lena's aim downwards before they entered the district; she kept walking about with misplaced steps with the occasional step on another's toes. "Oops...eh looks like we're close."
"Oh great, show me what the-" Lena stopped. The very moment her head rose she sobered up. Zeze's little whisper in her ear earlier and 'hangover cure' couldn't help her as much as this did. Anyone who lived in the country knew about the sleaziest zone in Giganto. The one that drew in twenty percent of the GDP and employed many, the redlight district. Streets upon streets pasted in rogue and latex suits. Orange and pink lights and pools of water over the streets reflecting the glare of the windows that many shopped from. Cursive neon writing, the scent of lavender and vanilla wafted through the air. Black rails and gaslit lamps set an ambiance that couldn't be beaten. Looking up many of the brothels had upper floors for you to reach via elevator, both men and women danced on the other end without a care in their mind, "You," her head tilted.
Before another word left her lips she was being pulled along no matter how much she attempted to fight back that smiling woman, "Come on don't worry about them! We're situated right on the entrance, smart eh? Get some Mr.Moneybags to pass buy, see an opportunity then invest!" Ailiya divulged with the new employee. That contract still stood. A twinge of fear settled when Lena saw the building. Black Lang's Mining was a standard office building by most regards with bold letters on the front. Small windows and beige paint; as basic as they came.
"Phew...you lost me for a moment," Lena laughed it off with Ailiya. Concern didn't leave the back of her mind. Gulping, her neuragear went to action searching for any information about this company. She was slow to step once only two articles of information appeared. Legal information documenting when the company was founded by Lang Wolfworthe and a map of the location. She wanted to cross-reference that photo with other older ones, however time ran out. She was inside.
It was the standard as she imagined, immediately greeted by a waiting room furnished in black and white. Screens hovered about the unmanned desk. A tacky fountain in the corner with a gentle pour around plants that lingered. Chairs were strangely soft as well, "So...looks empty."
"Mhm, most of our workers in other areas are droids set up in different areas doing work," Ailiya replied while going through the door opposite the entrance to get to the desk. How avid she was to type and add the new hire to their database, "Don't worry, let me add you to our existing info, and then I'll go over in-depth the details of the job, kay?" she had a small hum. Her fingers ushered Lena to take a seat. The only reading material she had was a copy of the signed contract. Why did her heart pound so much reading it? Her stress went off the charts reading the details.
Logistics. Mechanical work on heavy machinery. More details to be explained.
What more details? How could logistics be less strenuous when it entails so much mechanical work? Something was wrong. The taps of her fingers activated her neuragear with another search. It obtained the address, haste shown with cross-referencing to map and other locations. Her heart dropped. An image of the location from two weeks ago showed up. It was the same location, but the building was far from it. Rose walls and neon yellow signs advertising 'Lang's Funhouse'.
"So there aren't any robots in the building right now I'm guessing?" Lena folded her arms. Her back hunched with eyes focused forward.
"None, all out hunting for resources," Ailiya continued. Her monitor dinged with the finalization, "And we're all set-" her voice stolen from her. Ailiya rose her head from the screen and met with an arrow aimed at her. She gulped.
"Change of plans, scrap my contract," Lena's voice was harsh with demands. Head slung low couldn't believing how idiotic she was. Yet the claims she made were met with laughter. Hyena's sang a song of bloodlust. Ailiya wiped her tear away.
"Ah come on, if I tensed up every time some nobody chick shoved a gun in my face I wouldn't be cut out for the position I'm in now, would I?" Ailiya clapped her hands. Whirs of cogs fluttered from the ceiling, "I'd be dumber than you if I didn't have Lang set up some security!" Military-grade emps. Layers of ballistic glass fell on the counter before the bolt could stab through. On all corners of the room stood metallic balls; emps hidden among the paint, within the corner fountain and the soil of a potted plant. One arrow was all that fired before mimicking solar pulses shut down all of her mechanics. Not just Lena's bow no; her neuragear, optic lens, and skates went dead. Glare from the sudden shutdown blinded her left eye. "Ah, broads fresh from uni attract the most attention-oh don't worry about getting out now. You can't."
When Lena's vision regained what greeted her was that electrical document, "With a little editing and swiping…..bam" a single swipe changed the entire contact to one of Lang's Funhouse with her signature on it. Black Lang, Lang Wolfworthe wasn't a miner, rather a midnight woman. It was apparent with the few words she made out, "You signed the deal, now unless you want to make a scene like some of the others…." a click of a button sent a signal to the one behind the door. Slowly it creaked. A man stood behind there as big as can be with muscles of iron and skin dark like the bottom of the sea. Hair missing and tattoos over his head, and a look that could kill.
"So this is your game, huh?" Lena stood up straight. Those eyes were nothing to her; seen it a hundred times before.
"Game? Is that how you see it?" Ailiya had her finger on her chin, "You signed a contract with us, in our database and now obligated to work for us. Any incident and rise from now and who knows what could happen?" that friendly tone never vanished, "Who knows? Sue us and we'll show our documents? Countersue and the next thing you know, you're sitting on the side of the street crying with nothing coming for you. Seen it a dozen times before," Lena remained silent on her thoughts. "Oh, gone dumb now? Good if you understand why don't you-"
"I have two questions for you," Lena cut her off before taking a seat. Her fingers reached for the end of her heels, taking off the tight fit, "You target a ton of people like me, don't you?" the question was met with a nod by the man who slowly approached.
Ailiya laughed more at the stupidity, "What? Gonna whine to the job agency about us taking advantage of people? They won't believe ya! In a week you won't want to complain to them either if you know what's good for ya," she reached to her breast pocket for a simple cigarette. "I wasn't kidding when I said we did a background check."
"The first thing that came up was you being in the demilitarized zone and under investigation," the giant spoke, "Enough to send any hiring firm with self-respect in the other direction?" he shared that dumb smirk.
"You're right...it was dumb of me to not look into you people more, that damn smile tricks a lot of people," Lena laughed it off as she stood, "But that raises my second question," the man gripped her shoulder. "Do you really wanna die so fucking badly?"
A sharp thrust at his neck. The ice-adaption of her skate augmentation didn't hesitate to pierce his throat and neither did she. Cold eyes lacked any remorse, spinning the tool deeper and deeper into their throat, "Eat shit and die you scamming piece of shit!" a warcry. The man's arteries pierced. Lena stood firm on both legs, both arms holding the edged weapon yanked it across the right of his neck. Blood ran like the fountain with feeble gasps escaping. Hands grabbed at nothing. How the man of hubris fell. Blinding white turned darker by the second. "Try and do this to someone else huh!? Oh wait, you can't!"
A trampling of her feet over the wound was the last nail, "Wh-ah!" Ailiya's scream couldn't be heard by the outside world no matter how loud she was. Blood spilled before her eyes in a flurry of violence she never saw before. Lena was painted in the stuff, retrieving her skate her eyes focused on her next target.
"You…" the door to the backroom locked to Ailiya's command. Skates weren't sharp enough to puncture that glass either. Lena stepped back with eyes on the snapped door; all the way to the blocked entrance, "Scheming bitch," a charge. Her foot jolted the door, "If you did do your homework!" another kick cracked the door, "Then you would've thought twice about me!" the third kick axed the door in twane. Deep breaths rose heart rates. Ailiya didn't think this far, their machines out on the prowl. "Now….what will I do with you."
She stepped closer and closer. Ailiya fell off her seat with waving hands, trying to squeeze under the desk, "Wa-wait we can work this out!" she bargained, "I can make you a boss like me! We can-" Lena kicked the chairs away. Her mind raced thinking. Eyes landed on her phone. "I'll call the PD and tell them about you! The swarm's gonna be here in seconds!"
"Go ahead, they can have fun searching for your head," the stomp of Lena's foot broke her phone. No risks. In case this woman was calling on her neuragear, "Why should I go easy on you after you wanted to sell me out, huh?" her left arm dug under the desk. Yanking the midnight woman by the hair no mercy was given, "Where's that ego huh!?" again and again a head met the table and ballistic glass until the neuragear within snapped.
"Look at him out there," Lena's voice returned to a stable level, "Unless you want to end up like him, you're gonna take my name out of this scheme," demands in the clearest of tones, "You're gonna close down this branch and you'll tell Lang that unless they wanna get their tendons hacked off, you'll stop this whole shit. Do I make myself clear?" Ailiya didn't respond. Battered and bruised with lips swollen and eyes shut from blood, who could do more than just nod? One final bang out of spite before Lena stepped back. "And again, call the cops on me and it'll end up worse for you."
And just like that, she began to depart from the zone. The button of the monitor pressed to unlock the door; she walked over a body with no remorse whatsoever, "Ah….fucking stupid," she berated herself, "Of course no good job's gonna respond unless I get those charges dropped…" hands in pockets she began to walk off. Nothing was strange in the district of desires, nobody cared if anyone went missing as long as their carnal needs were needed. Time wasted and a fool made, Lena plotted her way home before another creep appeared.
None showed up, but something did steal their attention. From many streets away a bang was heard and the explosion seen over the skyrise. Hot white and orange death close yet far.