System Break

A familiar graffiti covered van pulled up and the cute asian girl hopped out and skipped over to us. She was wearing a harness with pistols attached on the front of each side of her hips. They were customized silver and black with short barrels. 

"Rui," Jake said. "Take him to the warehouse." He turned to me. "Practice with your exo for a day and I'll come get you tomorrow morning. Rui will show you the ropes."

With shorts which barely covered her ass she skipped back to the van and opened the door. With a flourish she said, "Get in big boy." Without any grace I wobbled over the dozen steps to the van, crouched and climbed in. As soon as my ass was clear of the door she slammed it shut. 

Within moments we were skidding through the streets at a rate of knots. "Slow down for the corners," I yelled while banging on the cab.

I heard rather than saw the roller door go up and down before she let me out. "Am I still in hiding?" I asked and she shrugged. 

She pointed. "Induction pad will charge your suit. Stand or sit on it, whatever you like. Go through the tutes then get some rest before tomorrow? Do you like fried chicken?"

I wanted to say no, but I hadn't had it for years and at the mention of it I suddenly craved it. "Sure."

"Good,'' she said and smiled. "Because I love it."

I couldn't help but notice the tattoo on her leg. "What's with the barcode tatt?"

She shrugged. "I liked the look of it."

I laughed.

"What?"

"I expected that it was some sort of cyborg or cybernetic meaning. Or hackers code. It's a fucking barcode not art."

She pointed to the tattoo on my chest.

"That's my unit, rank and our super-secret emblem."

"If it's a secret should it be a visible tattoo?" she said with a tilt of her head.

I smiled. "You're right now I'll have to kill you."

She rested a hand on one of her pistols. "Like to see you try old man."

I was wounded. I wasn't even thirty. I turned to walk towards the induction pad with the grace of a pregnant hippopotamus. "I'd be surprised if a 22 out of one of those toys could even break my skin."

She giggled and flipped me the bird.

For the rest of the day and most of the night I went through the tutes. Getting a handle of the operations and nuance of the exo. Rui had dragged out a cot for me and left it on the wall next to a workbench. I crashed until Jake arrived the next morning. It wasn't exactly the best night sleep, the exo encased me like tight fitting cage.

When the roller door opened the morning light streaked across the warehouse and woke me from my fitful sleep. 

"All hands on deck," Jake called. Rui appeared from a room at the end of the warehouse and from what I could see through the door it was carpeted and fairly well furnished.

"Where to boss man?" Rui asked.

"We need a vehicle, twice the size of this at least." He indicated her van. "Go fetch something non-descript and I'll take care of the rest. Just ensure the alarm and tracking are deactivated this time."

She saluted and said, "Yes boss man." The she skipped to the van and drove off.

Jake scratched his head. "Where did the salute come from?"

"She found out I was a soldier, maybe she's playing at it for the day. How old is she anyway?"

Jake shrugged. "Does it matter? She's good at what she's here to do."

"I guess not."

Jake smiled. "I like you Ben. Most of my clients are greedy bastards or on the run. Well technically you are. But you're one of those the system used and spat out." He paced and I watched him without saying a word.

"I've been doing a lot of digging since we first met. A lot. You'd be surprised the shit I found. Did you know," he continued, "That the Military got a kickback from sending you to China for the Qi Worlds Programme? And in the event of your death they would receive the full payout?"

I nodded. "Sort of. I knew about the payout because I have no kin. I didn't care, really I had nothing to lose."

Jake shook his head. "But you should have something to lose. That's my point. This exo you have on now. The military should have provided that. It was originally their technology after all. Well – the Military Industrial Complex that is. It really gets under my skin. Every war the US has been in since Iraq in the 80s, that's fifty years, fifty, has been to feed the Military Industrial Complex. Good men and women, like you, die to make other people rich."

He paced and seethed. He was visibly angry. "I hate these people Ben. The people that did this to you, the people at Huan and Joseon Industries. The corpos that fucked the world. My life is dedicated to ruining them."

I stared. He was a fanatic. An extremely talented and dangerous fanatic. "How does ruining them help anyone?"

He sighed. "If they're out of the way at least regular people can make a life for themselves. Each one I take down the dark clouds part just a little. Look, I don't expect to convert you to my cause. You should, but it's not necessary."

He looked me in the eyes. "Our goals are aligned. I help you and you help me. We both get what we want."

"My wants are pretty simple," I said.

"Are they? Are they though?" he challenged me. "In order to get what you want and the freedom to be left alone you have several adversaries in your way." He held up his fingers as he counted. "Huan, Joseon and the old crew from the Qi Worlds Programme."

I frowned. 

"I told you – I've been digging. What's your next step, the one thing that will get you autonomy."

"The gatekeepers connect, but I'm not even sure what they are."

Jake nodded. "And who has it now?"

"The Chancellor, one of the former directors. He's gone off grid."

Jake smiled. "And now, so have you."

"Do you know where to find him?" I asked.

Jake shook his head. "No, but you do."

My jaw dropped. "Loctris."

He nodded. "Loctris."

The warehouse door opened, and a truck beeped as it backed up. The cabin door opened, and Rui leaned out. "This big enough?"

Jake grinned and got out his tools. "It's great Rui." He tampered with its computer system while we waited.

"Okay," he said. "First stop is his residence."

Rui saluted. "Okay boss."

Jake glanced at me and I laughed. We hopped in the rear and held on for dear life as she drove through the streets of Wichita. 

Jake banged to the cabin wall. "Take it easy on the corners." He looked at me and shook his head.

"Who's residence?" I asked. The truck was used for moving and I grabbed hold of one the straps and wedged myself in firmly.

He smiled and held on for dear life. "We came to Wichita for a reason Ben. You know it's the home of aviation?"

"Sure."

"There's a company here called Saber who design and program all the controls for just about every shuttle system. If its in the sky, they probably made the controls. There's a few who do it inhouse, but the majority are these guys. I like to do two things at once, kill two birds with one stone so to speak. While I was 'working' at Saber I learned the Chairman's son worked there but he never showed up for work. He was busy playing a game. Can you guess which game?"

I smiled. "Qi Worlds."

Jake laughed maniacally and I worried for his mental health. He laughed so hard he brought himself to tears. "And can you guess what guild he is in?"

I shook my head. "No. No idea."

"I'll give you a hint. He's a simp."

It was my turn to laugh uncontrollably. The Reds were based in Loctris.