I returned to our guild with determination burning in my chest, my footsteps echoing against the synthetic flooring that pulsed with the rhythm of the club's bass. The chance for a better life, for everything I'd dreamed of with Lena, was within reach. Through the holographic barriers that separated each guild's territory - a necessity in Avalon where rival groups could turn violent at any moment - I could see my family waiting, their faces illuminated by the ever-present neon glow of the artificial atmosphere.
The guild spaces in Avalon were more than just meeting places; they were sanctuaries, each one protected by advanced AI systems that could detect hostile intent and regulate behavior. Our space, marked by the holographic sigil of crossed vibroblades, had been our home for as long as I could remember. The worn synthetic leather seats, the table scored with marks from countless card games and heated discussions, the flickering holo-displays showing bounty listings - all of it felt suffocating now, like chains binding us to this underground life.
Lena stood with her arms crossed, those green eyes that usually held such warmth now flickering with hurt and suspicion. Her red hair caught the shifting lights, creating a halo effect that reminded me of why I'd fallen for her in the first place. The memory of that alley where we first met flashed through my mind - her terrified eyes, my shaking hands after my first kill. We'd grown up together in this hell, but maybe that was part of the problem. Maybe we'd grown too comfortable with survival instead of living.
"What was that about?" she asked, her voice carrying an edge I rarely heard. Behind her, the massive holo-screen displayed news from the upper city - another corporate merger, another religious proclamation from the Empire's clergy, another story about how prosperous and peaceful Avalon was. The lies they fed the galaxy while we scrabbled in the dark below.
Before I could answer, my father spoke up, his weathered face a map of concern etched by years in the underground. The cybernetic implant at his temple - a reminder of a job gone wrong years ago - pulsed with a soft blue light. "Son, whatever she offered you, whatever deal you made – drop it." He wasn't just our leader in that moment; he was my father trying to protect his child, something I'd seen him do countless times before.
The familiar surge of frustration rose in my chest - the same feeling I'd had every time he'd held me back, every time he'd chosen the safer job over the more profitable one. I'd always wondered if his caution came from wisdom or fear, and for the first time, I was beginning to suspect the latter.
"Two billion IMP," I said, laying the contract on the table. The holographic document shimmered as it adjusted to the surface's texture, displaying the Empire's official seal - a reminder that even in this lawless place, some contracts still held power. "Each. Plus expenses covered. Half up front." The numbers hung in the air like smoke, making even Ragnar whistle low under his breath. His cybernetic eye whirred as it scanned the contract, probably running calculations I couldn't even comprehend.
Kevin leaned forward, his scarred face catching the light. The scars weren't just from combat - they were ritual markings from his time in the corporate wars, before he'd found refuge with our group. Always the practical one, he'd been my father's right hand for as long as I could remember. "Kid, think about what you're suggesting. Breaking into Avalanche? That's not just suicide – that's asking them to make an example of us. They don't just kill people who cross them; they erase them. Every trace, every memory, every digital footprint – gone. The AI systems they control, they're not like the basic security we deal with. They're ancient tech, from before the Empire, some say."
"We have inside help," I argued, pulling up a chair. The synthetic leather creaked under my weight as holo-ads for the latest neural implants danced across the ceiling - luxuries meant for those above, tempting those below. "Emilia's connections, her resources—"
"Emilia?" Lena cut in, her voice sharp as a vibro-blade. "First-name basis already?" Her fingers drummed against her arm, a nervous habit from her early days of combat training. The sound mixed with the distant thrum of the atmosphere processors that kept our underground hell breathable, a constant reminder of our dependence on Avalanche's technology.
I saw something in her eyes I'd never noticed before - not just jealousy, but fear. Fear that I was changing, becoming someone she didn't recognize. Maybe she was right.
"Dad, this is our chance," I pressed on, bringing up a holo-display of the upper city's layout. The towering spires of Avalanche's headquarters pierced the artificial sky like a crown of thorns. "One job, and we're set for life. No more skulking in the underground, no more taking whatever scraps the upper city throws down. No more watching the Empire's priests parade through the lower levels, promising salvation while they pocket credits from Avalanche."
My father's cybernetic implant flickered rapidly - a tell he'd never been able to control when agitated. "There's always a bigger score," he said, his voice carrying the weight of untold stories. "Always a job that promises to be the last one. I've seen too many good people die chasing that dream." He gestured to the guild around us, to the familiar faces that had become family. "You think I couldn't have aimed higher? Taken bigger risks?"
"Then why didn't you?" The question burst from me with more force than I intended, years of unspoken frustration finally finding voice. "Why did you choose to stay down here, taking small jobs, when you could have—" I stopped, seeing something crack in his expression.
"Because of your mother," he said quietly, and the guild fell silent. Even the ever-present hum of the club seemed to fade. "Before you were born, I was different. Ambitious. Reckless. I had augments, top-line combat mods that would let me take on corporate security. Your mother..." he paused, and I realized this was the first time he'd ever spoken about her this way. "She was a programmer for Avalanche. High-level. We met during a job, fell in love, and she helped me get access to restricted areas. We thought we were invincible."
The silence in our guild space grew heavier. Through the holo-barriers, I could see other bounty hunters and criminals going about their business, but they felt a world away.
"What happened?" I asked, though part of me already knew.
"We got caught. They didn't kill her - that would have been merciful. They took her consciousness, uploaded it into their system. Made her part of their security network." His hands clenched. "That's what they do to traitors. They don't waste talent; they repurpose it. Every time we run a job, every time we hack their systems, I wonder if some part of her is watching us, forced to serve the corporation that took her from us."
Lena's hand found mine under the table, her grip tight. The revelation hit me like a physical blow. All these years, I'd thought my father was being cautious out of fear. But it was guilt that drove him - guilt and a kind of pain I couldn't imagine.
Nebula's voice modulator hummed thoughtfully. "The consciousness uploading program. I've heard rumors, but I thought they were just stories to keep people in line."
"They're real," Keith confirmed, his augmented fingers moving through streams of data. "There's a whole section of Avalanche's systems that runs on captured minds. They call it the 'Eternal Service Program.' Corporate propaganda spins it as a way to achieve immortality, but it's really just another form of slavery."
The implications settled over us like a heavy fog. My father wasn't just protecting us from death - he was protecting us from a fate worse than death. Yet somehow, this made me more determined, not less.
"Then we need to do this," I said firmly. "Not just for the money now. That chip Emilia wants us to recover - what if it contains information about the program? What if it could help us understand what happened to mom?"
My father's expression shifted, something awakening in his eyes. "You don't know what you're suggesting."
"No, I don't," I admitted. "But I know we can't keep living like this, always looking up at those towers, always wondering what happened to her. You've spent years protecting us, teaching us to survive. Maybe it's time we did something more."
The guild fell silent again, but this time the silence felt different. Through the transparent ceiling, the upper city's lights seemed to pulse with new meaning. Each glowing window might hide another stolen consciousness, another family torn apart by corporate greed.
Kevin cleared his throat. "The kid's got a point, boss. We've all lost something to them. Maybe it's time we took something back."
Max, who usually kept to himself, stepped forward. The neural scars on his neck - marks from black market augments - caught the neon light. "You're not the only one with ghosts in Avalanche's systems, boss. My sister... before she ended up in the mid-levels hospital, she was part of their 'voluntary' consciousness preservation program. They promised to cure her degenerative condition. Instead, they took everything she was."
Ragnar's cybernetic eye whirred as he processed old memories. "The Empire preaches about digital ascension, about preserving our souls in their holy machines. But it's all just pretty words for what Avalanche really does - turning people into programs, slave minds running their systems."
I watched my father as each team member spoke, saw the weight of years lifting from his shoulders even as new burdens settled in. The holographic displays around us flickered with data streams - bounty listings, security alerts, corporate news feeds - all of it controlled by AI systems that might contain fragments of people we once knew.
"Show me the contract again," he said finally, his voice heavy with decision.
I brought up the holographic document, its imperial seals glowing with authentication markers. As my father studied it, I could see him processing not just the terms, but all the years of playing it safe, of keeping his head down, of living with the knowledge of what happened to my mother.
"If we do this," he said slowly, "we're not just stealing a chip. We're declaring war on the most powerful corporation in the underground. Maybe in all of Avalon." His cybernetic implant pulsed rapidly, reflecting his internal conflict. "Every security system we face might be powered by... by someone we knew. Someone they took."
Lena stepped forward, her hand still in mine. "Then we free them too. Or at least, we try to understand what happened to them. That chip might have answers - not just for Emilia's family, but for all of us."
Keith's augmented fingers danced through the air, pulling up building schematics, security protocols, and personnel files. "The Avalanche headquarters has 200 floors above ground, and another 50 below. Their main data centers are in the sublevels, protected by AI systems that can adapt to any intrusion attempt. But..." he paused, a rare smile crossing his face, "every AI has patterns. Even the ones running on human consciousness."
"The consciousness uploading program would be in the deeper levels," Nebula added, her voice modulator giving her words an ethereal quality. "If we're going in anyway, we could plant some data miners, try to understand what they're really doing down there."
I watched my father's face as the team talked, saw the moment when the veteran bounty hunter who always played it safe transformed into something else - something that reminded me of the stories my mother used to tell about him, about the man he was before caution and guilt reshaped him.
"We'll need better gear," he said finally, pressing his thumb to the contract's authentication pad. The document glowed with acceptance. "Not just weapons and tech, but specialized equipment for dealing with their AI systems. Keith, how fast can you adapt our neural interfaces to handle possible consciousness-based security?"
Keith's eyes lit up with the challenge. "Give me a week and unlimited resources, I can make our systems dance with their ghosts."
"We'll also need to understand what we're really walking into," Kevin added, his tactical mind already working the angles. "This Emilia - she's not telling us everything. Nobody from the upper city comes down here unless they're desperate... or unless they're playing a deeper game."
My father nodded. "Beren, she trusts you. You'll need to get close to her, find out what she's not telling us. But be careful - upper city types, they're raised on deception. It's as natural to them as breathing recycled air is to us."
The warning stirred something in me - a memory of that strange smile Emilia had given me, the too-perfect way she'd played to my ambitions. But we were committed now, for better or worse.
"One week," my father announced to the team. "We take that time to prepare, to plan, to understand exactly what we're walking into. Then we go after Avalanche - not just for the money, but for everyone they've taken from us."
As the team broke into groups, beginning the intricate process of planning our impossible heist, I felt the weight of what we were attempting settle over me. This wasn't just about escaping the underground anymore. It was about confronting the dark heart of Avalon itself - the corporation that turned human minds into programs, that used our own people against us, that kept us trapped in this neon-lit hell while they lived in their towers above.
Looking up through the transparent ceiling at those gleaming spires, I wondered if somewhere in Avalanche's vast network of AI systems, some part of my mother was watching us, waiting. And for the first time, I understood why my father had always stared up at those same towers with such a complex mix of emotions.
We were no longer just bounty hunters taking on an impossible job. We were something else now - revolution, perhaps, or revenge, or maybe just the desperate acts of people who'd lost too much to keep living in the shadows.
The upper city gleamed above us, but its light no longer felt like mockery. It felt like a challenge. And this time, we were ready to answer it - whatever the cost.