Ciao Mein

The darkness shattered in flashes of red and white, pulsing to the beat of the hammer pounding her skull. And the buzzing—where was that coming from? Simonee tried to open her eyes, but their lids were stuck; her arms refused to help clear them. She rolled—moaning, groaning—and wiggled her fingers until the needles moved into her hand and then her arm. One eyelid came unstuck, and then the other; she picked out the crust, sat up, and winced; tried to wet her lips with a dry tongue.

Oh, shit! Ragana, Dalia—all of it rushed back in and she spun on the metal deck, searching, patting her pockets. She found her smartcomm, buzzing like an angry bee. With the network block gone, notifications stacked up—too many messages to read. She synched up her eye and blinked—her agents’ messages bubbled to the top.

Shit, shit, shit! The APB had been out for almost an hour now. “What the fuck? Armed and dangerous?”

Looking around, the room was empty—now the desk was gone too—and light poured in through the open door. She stood—stumbled—and then paced a circle while scrolling through her feed.

There was too much to ingest. “Keen Kite, you with me? I need a summary: what’s going on?”

11:04:35 [KeenKite] Boss! You’re back! Short version: whatever you do, do NOT go outside!
11:04:36 [SaltySquid] And take your smartcomm offline now! Aggy’s been trying to access Location services nonstop—your VPN’s been compromised, though the access-points in this section are all reporting random locations, so she can’t triangulate your device address. You’ve got maybe 30 minutes before she narrows down the section and locks it down.

Simonee reached for the power button, but:

11:04:47 [GossipyGecko] Wait! GreenEyedGurl6969 snagged a hit on the relays. Someone wants to help. They triggered the legacy serial tag, here’s the chat log:

She read it—a friend? Simonee didn’t have any of those anymore. Could it be SynBio? Who else knew her serial number? She never even told Dalia.

The message originated from GenHab, but directed her to Corp B. There was no way she’d get there unnoticed. She should hold out here—but how long before they searched the dead zones? Would they ever stop looking?

Too many questions: she leaned out the door and scanned the corridor for sensors—nothing active. Ragana left her a runway.

“Keen Kite, how far can I go before I’m outside the dead zone?”

11:06:46 [KeenKite] 😬 Not far. Looks like this corridor is dead up to the lift access in either direction.

“Fuck.” Not much of a runway it seemed, but which way to go? Corp B was full of restaurants and shops, which stored their wares here on this ring—she had an idea.

“Keen Kite, can you get me eyes on the upper levels? I need a big crate.”

11:08:13 [KeenKite] On it, boss.

KeenKite delivered; three feeds appeared just ahead in her visual field: a woman tugging a cart piled with plastic totes—too small; a man guiding a rack of designer coats—no cover; there, a short guy dragging a portable walk-in freezer through cold storage. She recognized him—the owner of Ciao Mein, an Italian-Chinese fusion joint on Corp B: good noodles, lousy pizza.

“The guy with the freezer, where’s the nearest blind spot?”

11:09:21 [KeenKite] Two hundred to your right, there’s a junction with a dead camera, but he’s one level up and heading there fast—you need to run. Also, that freezer isn’t ventilated.

Simonee sighed. “That’s the least of my problems.”

Running down the corridor, she stopped at a maintenance shaft along the wall—the panel was locked. She cursed, rummaged in her satchel, and pulled the bundle of wires she used on the safe earlier—one charge left. She fired, the pulse lifted her arm hair as the panel unlocked. Slipping inside, she shimmied up the narrow ladder to the next level. This panel wasn’t locked, so she peered through a crack: the junction was to the right and the man with the freezer in her direction. If her bearings were straight, he’d have to turn left for the lift.

11:12:13 [KeenKite] Sim, the camera to your left is live. If you exit here you’ll be in field for two meters.

11:12:14 [PrimPeacock] Oh! My turn. Hood up sweetheart, and roll along the wall. Aggy’ll be confused as shit, and then you’ll be gone.

She waited. But her bearings were off, or this guy had other plans because he didn’t turn; he walked right past Simonee. But then he stopped.

Pulling a vaporizer from his pocket he sat against the wall opposite Simonee with his legs crossed. After a long pull off the vape, he puffed out a big white cloud that smelled like cherry but made the air taste like popcorn. Simonee watched as he took another puff, and blew it out in rings.

“Keen Kite, can you give me the feed off that camera?” She whispered.

The feed popped into view and the freezer was visible at the edge; her hiding spot was also clearly in view. The vapor clouds reflected infrared, virtually blinding the camera, but only for a moment.

11:14:23 [PrimPeacock] Are you thinking what I’m inferencing here Sim? Count to fifteen between breaths—you’ll have white out for five. But put the hood up anyway, girl, it looks cool as hell.
11:14:24 [SaltySquid] And turn off your smartcomm!

She powered off the smartcomm, and counted: 13... 14... 15, go. Pushing open the panel, she ducked low, and snuck behind the freezer. Clack! The panel slapped shut behind her.

“Dafuq?” The man stood; she froze—back against the freezer door.

Beige sandals and bare toes appeared next to Simonee. He spit into the corner, and grumbled, “Fuckin’ rats, man. This place is a dump.”

Turning back, he took up the cart’s handle and pulled; Simonee slipped inside the freezer as soon as it moved.

She got lucky: they weren’t inspecting containers yet. However, the push-release on the inside of the door was broken, so when the guy finally opened the door half an hour later, Simonee fell on Ciao Mein‘s kitchen floor—gasping and blue. The owner shouted obscenities as she heaved and spun. When she was able to stand, he chased her out the back with a meat cleaver.

It could have been worse, but now she was exposed—and once the owner realized who she was, he’d collect his 10,000 scrip reward. She kept her face under the hood as she staggered through the service corridor. With her smartcomm offline, she had no idea if she was being tracked, but this corridor wasn’t well monitored. She found the equipment room unlocked and disabled all the cameras in the area before ducking into a janitor’s closet nearby.

Hazarding a few minutes with her smartcomm, Simonee configured a homing drone and then went dark again.

Now she waited in the dark—totally blind other than what she could see through the slits in the door vent. Stripes of light cut across the gloom, taking her back to the shipping container, where light cut the shadows like blades. It was her worst day, her best day—November Fifth, 2185—she considered it her birthday. But back then she wasn’t alone: smooth heads, pale faces, and blue, worried eyes.

There were a dozen of them—her sisters. She huddled in a corner with one of them, and they cried together. That unit was disfigured—her limbs crooked. Her sobs had no language, just the confused torment of a creature birthed into pain. She was being disposed of—they all were. Simonee escaped that fate, alone, and now again she waited on a savior.

Motion in the corridor startled her, but recognition hitched her chest, threatening a squeal of excitement.

---

Mariem crept into the closet, shutting the door behind her. The broken light highlighted a janitor cart under a clutter of brooms and mops. The tang of cleansers rankled her nostrils. A shadow blurred out from the corner; Mariem yipped, but a familiar warmth locked around her waist. Simonee buried her head there under Mariem’s breasts, her small body shaking with sobs.

Mariem remembered this feeling: her door-lock hacked; the room dark; the same shadow pressed to her waist, soaking her uniform in blood.

Mariem pried the girl off her abdomen, but Simonee grabbed her hands in a sweaty embrace. Her touch was hot like a fever or the heat of bodies pressed together on a frigid Callisto night. Mariem flushed as images plagued her mind—erotic and enticing. Mariem swam in those memories of pleasure, but guilt rattled her stomach—she didn’t want these thoughts.

“Simonee!” Mariem rasped, pulling out of the smaller girl’s grip. “Get your shit together!”

Simonee stepped back; Mariem leaned on her knees, panting.

“Sorry,” Simonee looked down. “I forgot.”

Mariem breathed until she regained control. The first time she felt that touch was on the Zentari-Neys heavy cruiser Eleos. It was a routine disposal run for SynBio. She scanned each unit one by one, confirming the cargo manifest headed for destruction. One of the units touched her arm, peering up at her with bright green eyes.

“Pomogi mne,” the thing pleaded.

Mariem pulled free; a guard jabbed it in the side with an electric prod. It fell to the ground in spasms. Mariem cursed at him as she kneeled, and scanned its right eye. The tablet in her hand beeped: 70371 was counted.

In the brochures, SynBio called it enhanced pheromonal effluence. It was in their sweat, their tears. Their blood—such were the appetites of powerful men. Mariem shuddered out the last of the effect. More like MSG for the libido.

Simonee wiped the tears on her sleeves, but the grin remained. With a flick she tossed her hair aside, revealing a violet light where there had once been an empty, scarred socket. The effect was startling, but awesome.

This girl was so much different from the pitiful thing Mariem had set adrift into the cold universe—freshly decanted and oh so young. They grew them to sexual maturity—just a few years in the tanks—the ideal age for chattel. But that was ten years ago; here she looked almost thirty. The bags under her eyes spoke to a different level of maturity. Yet after all those years, she still glowed with the same incandescent gratitude.

“It’s so good to see you, Mariem,” Simonee croaked. “You have no idea. I thought I was royally fucked.”

Mariem breathed out. “Well, don’t get too excited. We still need to get to my ship. What the hell did you do anyway—besides piss off the most powerful family in the solar system?”

Simonee’s smile sank into an ugly frown; her eyes darted to the floor. “I broke my best friend’s heart.”

Mariem sighed. “This should be interesting.”

Simonee blurted out the days events in a disjointed panic. Her hands flew around in apoplectic fits.

Mariem put her hands on Simonee’s shoulders and squeezed. “Hey, relax, we’ll figure it out, okay?”

Simonee sniffled, nodding.

Mariem turned to peer out at the empty corridor through the cracked-open door.

“Mariem?” Simonee whined.

Mariem closed her eyes. Simonee had that you’re-not-going-to-like-what-I’m-about-to-ask tone in her voice. Mariem groaned. “Yeah, sugar.”

“I know the entire station is out looking for me and everything, but...” Simonee breathed. “I need to get into my apartment. There’s something there I need.”

“You’ve gotta be kidding me!”

Simonee’s eyes bugged out. “It’s important! It might fix everything.”

“You know, I stopped by there. Three guards were trying really hard to break down your door.” Mariem shook her head. “You’re damn lucky I’m in the market for a hacker.”

Simonee sighed. “They won’t get in.”

“Your confidence is cute, but they had torches and all kinds of other stuff.”

“I lined the door with thermal conduction sinks. The torches will run dry before the metal even starts glowing. They’ll have to use thermite on the door bolts, and that requires authorization to disable fire suppression.” Simonee said, matter-of-factly.

“My, haven’t you become a clever little thing?”

“If I hadn’t, I’d be dead now.”

Mariem winced as guilt kicked her in the stomach again—that was on her. It was all on her. Every day she kept the girl hidden was a day she lied to Carlos. She kicked the chick out of the nest just to cover her own ass. But that wasn’t the only reason was it?

“Regardless, the place is surrounded. Any clever ideas how to get past the guards?” Mariem asked.

Simonee sighed again. It was long and reluctant. “I know someone who can get in, but he isn’t a friend. His name is Mason—he got me into this mess in the first place. But I’m out of options.”

Mariem raised an eyebrow. “I know that name…” Her eyes flew open. “Oh shit, not him. Can’t you just wait it out on my ship? We’ve got plenty of hiding places.”

Simonee shook her head. “I hurt Dalia. I can’t run away without making it right.”

“And why the hell not?” Mariem hissed, shaking her head and turning back to the door.

Simonee wrapped her arms around Mariem’s waist, pressing a cheek against her spine. “Because you didn’t run away from me. That’s how I try to live the life you gave me.”

“Well shit. We’ll need help then.” Mariem sighed. “He is not going to be happy about this.” He’s going to have a fucking heart attack.