The Rustie at Cyber Lily Academy A & B

A:

I awoke with a start. I didn't know where I was, but I couldn't shake the feeling I was supposed to be doing something important. A sharp pain shot through my head and I was startled again once my eyes focused. When I looked at my surroundings, everything suddenly came back.

I was in the hotel room Jel had booked for me. The place was amazing. At that point, it was the most extravagant thing I'd ever seen.

It was a deluxe room at the Grand Solnya. Outfitted with floors of shimmering Martian marble, it was truly fit for a king. I rolled over my cloud-like king size bed and got something stuck on my foot. I pulled it off and was surprised that it was a woman's pink bra. A large one.

A door opened on the other side of the room and a beautiful woman walked out completely naked from head to toe. She was tall and dark and, judging from her proportions, the owner of the bra I was holding.

She looked a bit older than me as well.

"Ah, you were hiding this from me."

She reached over, gave me a passionate kiss and grabbed the clothing item.

To my horror, I had no idea who she was. In fact, I couldn't remember much of anything after I'd checked into the hotel the night before.

I was inclined to think there was some sort of conspiracy. Perhaps I was drugged by some criminal syndicate due to my new affiliation with S.H.I.N.J.I. But when I saw the bottle of authentic Mexican tequila laying empty on the ground, I put two and two together.

The woman saw me staring at the bottle.

"I guess some people can still get imports from Earth. I still can't believe you sprung for that. Your company really doesn't care if you charge it to the room?"

I tried to be discreet while scanning her DigitalID, but instead an error came up on my HUD.

[DigitalID Scan Failed: Access Unauthorized. A report has been filed by the source operating system.]

The woman laughed.

"I didn't expect you to remember my name, but I thought you'd know better. Why would I tell you my real name when you won't tell me yours, Mark Flash?"

She laughed to herself again, but this time took her right hand and grabbed me right between the legs and began to slowly stroke.

I wasn't planning on telling her to stop, until another message came up on my HUD.

[Event Reminder: Cyber Lily Academy Orientation begins in 10 minutes.]

I knew I'd forgotten something important.

I kicked the mystery girl out of my hotel room and called a cab.

In truth, I'd rather have gone back to bed. But according to Jel, this contract I signed had serious penalties if I missed school. From now on I'd be receiving a stipend from S.H.I.N.J.I., in addition to the scholarship covering tuition. But I'd get fined if I missed class. And apparently the fines could exceed the stipend payment, so I could end up with even more debt.

In hindsight, I really should've read that contract.

Yes, they were still going to pay my debt. But only once I'd graduated from Cyber Lily Academy.

The cabbie got stuck in traffic.

"Is there any way you could go faster?"

"Do you want me to take the Skyway? You'll have to pay the toll."

I approved the charge and the cabbie got off at the next exit.

The Skyway was almost mythical to the poorer citizens of Neon City. It's a network of high-altitude highways that gives drivers with the right equipment the opportunity to soar above the bustling streets of the city.

Everyone'd imagined what it would be like to soar through the city at such heights. To be able to look down on the kaleidoscope of city sparkle. To tower over the tallest buildings, and take in a surely breathtaking view of the entire cityscape.

But the actual experience was beyond that. The drive itself was smooth and effortless. The roads were engineered to be stable and steady, even at high altitudes. The air currents were calm and consistent; I got to enjoy the look of glass, steel and neon lights glistening in the morning sun.

When the cabbie pulled up to the campus of Cyber Lily Academy, I knew I'd arrived in more ways than one.

For one, the main building alone was like something out of fairy tale. It stood way out from the rest of the architecture in that part of Neon Manhattan. Most of that area had modern buildings with a lot of glass and sharp edges. But the campus of Cyber Lily Academy was gothic, it could've been a castle thousands of years ago in France on Earth.

Despite the classical appearance, I was prompted to allow a retina scan when I went to enter the building. I'll admit I was relieved when I was approved.

The inside was equally magnificent. I came into a large hall that was packed with students. On the walls were stained glass windows with some intricate designs. I walked up to an amazing painting that was on display.

"You have a taste for Cezanne? That's a good start. The Crown Prince of Ganymede gave it to me as a gift when I finished my PhD at the University of Jupiter."

"Uh… no. I haven't tasted a cezanne before. Is that the d'oeuvres the waiters are bringing around?"

I turned around and looked at who was speaking to me. A relatively short man with brown curls was stifling a laugh behind a pair of thick-rimmed glasses.

He had on a name tag, so I didn't have to scan for a DigitalID.

"Dr. Skip Laster?"

"That's right. And you're Graze Bleu. I'm the chairman of the Board of Directors here at Cyber Lily Academy. And the S.H.I.N.J.I. Representative-at-Large. And you're the recipient of the S.H.I.N.J.I. Scholarship. We expect great things from you."

It looked like our conversation had already garnered the attention of the other students.

"Is that… him? What the heck is he wearing?"

"Gross. He dresses like a bum. Charity case?"

Like a gang of wolves, they formed a circle around me. Looking back at them, I could tell I was a bit underdressed. Their clothes just looked brighter and more stylish.

Dr. Laster shook his head dismissively, handed me a piece of paper and leaned into my ear.

"They'll eat you alive, if you let them. Here's your room assignment. Your uniforms will be delivered tomorrow."

Then he turned around and made an announcement to the room.

"He's going to end up surpassing all of you, when it's all said and done."

The sound of the room was overtaken by murmurs of disapproval.

B:

As Dr. Laster walked away, it dawned on me that I was now the only male in the room. I remembered that this was Cyber Lily's first year in their history accepting male students. As I did, the guy I was looking at sauntered right up to me.

With his dark hair and average build, he looked pretty forgettable. Except for his bright glowing green eyes. They were so green I assumed they'd been enhanced. It wasn't unheard of for Trojans to have plastic surgery, even if they didn't need it. Still, it was strange for such a young guy.

He stood in front of me and spoke like he was making an announcement to the entire room.

"So, you're the reason there are S.H.I.N.J.I. agents around here now?"

I had no idea what he was talking about. I mean, I was technically a S.H.I.N.J.I. agent, but it didn't sound like that was what he meant. I just stared at him.

"That 'advisor' of yours? He's on the Board of Directors at that terrorist organization."

Someone heckled at the boy's characterization of S.H.I.N.J.I. He ignored them and, taking a more peaceful manner, held out his hand.

"I'm Shota Takahashi, you probably already know who I am. Or at least my family. Everyone in Neon City has played our games. I haven't gotten your name though. I didn't see you on the class roster, so I assume you just added."

"Graze. Graze Bleu."

"I see. Man of few words?"

Shota had an ease to his manner of speaking. And an overtly posh accent that like he'd been raised on Earth. It was the kind of accent that sent chills down the spine of anyone from a place like Old Town.

I'd read that Trojan kids were often taught rhetoric and speech-making from a young age, on account of how important they were in the upper tiers of Neon City society.

I could tell he was already sizing me up from the way I dressed and looked. Was this what so-called 'high society' was like? He started again.

"I see you're on scholarship as well. I take it you are not from the Upperside of Neon Manhattan?"

That remark triggered a round of chuckles froma pack of girls behind him.

"No. I'm not."

"I see. Are you from the slum? Like the one down in Old Town? Because that's what you're accent sounds like. Not to mention, that stench."

The last part sent a chill through the room, but I didn't really care.

"Yes, we've got ourselves an Old Town street kid. An actual Rustie at Cyber Lily Academy. I'll admit people said letting in us boys would make the school go down hill, perhaps they were correct."

He laughed to himself at that last part, but it seemed like he meant it.

The term 'Rustie' was a dig at my being from Old Town. It was actually kind of an out-of-date term. I was surprised he pulled that one out.

I waved him off. I'd decided to remove myself from the escalating situation before Shota said something he'd regret. But he kept going on.

"Is it true what they say about the women in Old Town, that they're all prostitutes? I'd like to pay a visit sometime. Perhaps your mother and sisters would offer me a discount."

Our audience braced for my reaction, and I reacted. My left hand left my side and made a sudden swipe for Shota's face. I hit him hard, but only with my open hand. Still, the sound ricochet throughout the large hall and Shota collapsed to the ground like he'd been shot.

That was when I remembered my new found strength from the cybernetic enhancements I'd had surgically installed by S.H.I.N.J.I. Immediately, I was regretful and went to help Shota up, but he scurried away from me and then scrambled back to his feet.

"That was… you didn't knock me over. I just slipped."

Shota looked around at the enraptured on-lookers.

"What are you all looking at?"

Hearing the commotion, Dr. Laster had come back into the room.

"Is everything alright?"

Shota took this as his opportunity to exit. Dr. Laster turned back and spoke discreetly to me again.

"Stay out of trouble, please. You don't want to hurt any of these kids. There are some situations even S.H.I.N.J.I. can't get you out of. Maybe you should head up to your dorm and get acclimated."

I took his advice and made my way to the elevator that was marked as leading to the dorms.

It really was an amazing campus. I hadn't seen much yet, but I was amazed at how natural beauty was fused with the hypermodern and sleek architecture. There were flowers and plants growing, and nature was weaved in between the machines that populated the campus.

For example, the main hall where we met had an enormous grey stone marble water fountain as its centerpiece. Students were strewn about studying on their tablets, while others just marveled at its blue serene beauty.

That was when I saw her. The girl I'd been waiting for.

Standing there in an ornate gothic black dress, studded with lace as silver as her hair, stood Snow. Snow Solnya was staring me down from next to the elevator, blue light refracting endlessly in her eyes.

She froze. And she looked like she'd seen a ghost. It made sense, because the last time she'd seen me I'd been blown to smithereens by a car on Bitbolt Avenue. I moved to talk to her, but she fled, running into the elevator as it was closing.

"Wait!"

I yelled out to Snow as the doors closed. She looked relieved, but I wasn't going to let her get away. Perhaps somewhat recklessly, I used my Quantum Time Affinity to give myself enough time to get into the elevator before the door closed.

I stood before her inside the elevator. Tears were streaming down her face as it began to ascend.