Enter: S.H.I.N.J.I. C & D

C:

I still wasn't used to the changes that had been made to my body. The pain was constant, but starting to dull. And then there was my new found strength. I could lift things effortlessly, and I didn't get tired when I ran. In fact, I wasn't getting tired at all.

As I finished the long-walk back to my flat in Old Town, it occurred to me that I should've asked for more information about this new body of mine. Was there an instruction manual? Maybe a tutorial? Really, I had no idea what procedures had been performed and what they'd installed.

It was starting to get dark by the time I got to my neighborhood. In a couple hours, the streets in this part of Old Town, known as Boystown, would become a no man's land.

I got to my door and put my eye up to the scanner. My access was denied. I tried a few more times and was denied again. I wondered if they'd done something to my retina that made the ID check fail, so I scanned my wrist. That was denied too.

So either this was some crazy error happening because of my new cybernetics, or my landlord had evicted me and already rented my place out to someone else. That would also mean that all of my possessions had been seized by the landlord, and he could set whatever price he wanted for me to get them back.

I decided to try and sneak in through a window in the back.

Luckily, the cybernetic enhancements made it a lot easier to scale the side of my apartment building. I got up to the window and saw that there was some sort of red light, and people inside my apartment. Confident I'd be able to reason with them, or throw them out, and pried the window open with my fingers and climbed in.

A man's raspy voice yelled out as I walked through the apartment.

"Cut! I said cut!"

There was a portly and disheveled man, dressed in a black turtleneck, black pants and a black beret sitting in a director's chair and shouting instructions in the middle of my small living room.

"What the hell are ya doing? The burgler's not supposed to come in until the third act! We're still doing foreplay here."

I looked around and was stunned by what I saw.

There was a director, and film and lighting crews all setup in the middle of what was once my living room. And I was shocked by what they were filming.

There was a muscular man and petite woman engaged in romantic embrace right on what had been my kitchen table. It seemed I'd walked into an adult movie scene.

I was ready to throw them out, at least until their security guard walked in and pointed his shotgun in my face. I didn't know what my body was capable of, but I didn't want to risk getting my head blown off by this guy. Not to mention, even if I did take them all out, I still didn't have rights to that apartment anymore.

I figured it was fine. I would just buy a new, much nicer apartment, with the money from the broach… then I noticed the broach was gone too.

It wasn't the first night I'd spent on the streets of Old Town, but it was the first in a while.

Actually, I didn't get any sleep that night. I spent it wondering around, and rethinking all of my life choices.

It wasn't only my choices that had led to this situation. But I couldn't help but imagine what it could've been like. What if I hadn't tried to hustle Snow Solnya at Arcade 7? Maybe I could've just been chill and asked her on a date. Maybe we would've gotten on and, eventually, we'd get together. I could live with her at the legendary Solnya Estate…

That kind of daydreaming wasn't something I often did, maybe the atmosphere of Bayfront Docks had gotten to me.

As I walked through Old Town, I eventually came to Solnya Tower, my former home. My memories of my old life, at least the ones that were left, flooded my mind. The times I'd spent with my mom. Getting into trouble with the other kids. Everything I did before I wound up living on the streets, where I spent the years of my childhood after my mom left.

Solnya Tower was were I learned to hustle. It was were I first put in work for ak91 and obtained credits I didn't have to beg for.

I thought I'd give anything to see my mother again. To ask her why she left. To ask her what was wrong with me that she had to leave.

I pondered this as I stared up at the tall tower, with lights emanating from thousands of windows, in front of the night sky.

Then, as if reading my mind, I received a message on my comms.

<Graze Bleu? Want to find out more about your mother?>

The sender was unknown. Even the RawID was somehow all zeroes. I responded.

<Yes. Of course. Who is this?>

<Fantastic. Be at 1367 Takahashi Drive in Bayfront Docks at dawn.>

Back to Bayfront Docks it was. But I had a feeling I already knew who the caller would be.

D:

At dawn, I showed up to the address. And I was not surprised to find out it was a public-facing office of S.H.I.N.J.I.

The comm had included a movement pass to re-enter Bayfront Docks. The one I'd been on before expired the moment I left.

It really was a beautiful place. Many people even considered Bayfront Docks the most aesthetically appealing borough of Neon City. Everything was built to a certain stylistic code and well-maintained by order of law. It was the kind of municipality that would fine you for letting the grass on your front lawn grown an extra centimeter. Not the kind of place I'd fit in.

I almost preferred the dilapidation, grunge and graffiti of Old Town.

The S.H.I.N.J.I. offices were impressive. They were sleek and modern, but in a grand way. The kind of place you'd expect for a forward thinking Mechagear developer. One that was known to be as powerful as they were innovative.

For example, the front door was all glass and was at least 12 feet high. As soon as I entered the offices I stepped on the floor map in front. The door itself greeted me, "Welcome Graze Bleu" and a eager young attendant rushed to greet me. She was also cute. A mousy girl who had more confidence than I expected. Cute enough I had to wonder if S.H.I.N.J.I. had a of policy of only hiring absolute babes. Maybe did want to work there.

A news report hologram was being broadcast onto the black marble floors of the main reception area.

"Jovian Defense officials recently walked out of the fifth round of negotiations with executives at Solnya Corp. This news sparked a sell-off of Jovian State stock in the Neon Securities Exchange (NSX)."

It was wild to think that the girl I saved was a Solnya. I wondered if she even knew I was still alive.

I sat on the red leather chairs in the waiting room and watched busy salarymen scuttle in and out of the lobby.

Eventually I got a tap on the shoulder from behind, and was greeted by a familiar woman's voice.

"I had a feeling we'd be seeing each other again."

Jel led me into the elevator and used her ID to send us to a floor that wasn't even listed. I sat on a chair in front of the desk in her office, a grand room with a view of Bayfront Docks that was probably worth more than my entire family line.

Dramatically, Jel took the thinker's pose over her desk.

"So the last time we talked, you rejected me."

"Sorry…"

"It's okay, I like guys who make me work for it."

"Um…"

"Clearly you must've reconsidered, right? Sign this, here's a pen."

Jel shoved a document the size the Intergalactic Encyclopedia, and a pen, in my face.

"I know it's old school, but these kind of contracts require a physical signature. Oh… that is embarrassing. You do know how to write your name, right? I don't know how far they go in the Old Town education system. It's ok if you can't, I'll do it for you—"

"No, I can write my name."

Eager to shut her up, I grabbed the document and pretended I was about to sign it, but hesitated. Jel narrowed her eyes and looked right at me.

"You didn't care about the prestige of working for the most storied corporation in Sector 6. You didn't care about having a life-ruining debt repaid overnight. I know what brought you here."

"You promised information about my mother."

"And we will deliver."

"Tell me what you know."

"She's dead."

What she told me was horrifying. I rejected the idea instinctively.

"That's… it can't be… that's impossible."

"No, it isn't. We're still investigating the details, but she's dead."

"But the NCMA registry says—"

"That she's merely missing? Do you think they spend even five minutes investigating the death of some Old Town rustie— I mean individual? S.H.I.N.J.I. has done more investigation into the case of your mother's disappearance, just to recruit you, than the NCMA Police Force ever did."

"Really?"

"Really. We aren't all bad, you know. And if you sign on with us, we will continue this investigation and eventually discover the truth about what happened."

My heart jumped at the thought. So much about my life was a blur to me. If I could learn the circumstances that led to my hardship, it would be invaluable. But something was still holding me back.

Jel saw this and pulled something out of the drawer of her desk.

"Don't you want to give this back to that girl? I bet she'd be happy to see you again."

It was the blue broach I'd stolen from Snow Solnya at the arcade. Jel stood up, walked over, and placed it in the palm of my hand.

I really did want to see her again. I wasn't even sure why. Maybe I just wanted a "thank you" that I felt owed for saving her life. Or maybe I just wanted to return what I'd stolen.

Either way, I ended up signing the document. Jel was ecstatic.

"Wonderful! I'll send you the movement pass so you can easily access Bayfront Docks and Neon Manhattan."

"Oh ok— wait, WHAT? Neon Manhattan?!"

"Well, yes. You'll need a pass to get to the hotel. You'll be staying at the Grand Solnya on Fifth Avenue in Neon Manhattan."

"…"

"You need some place to stay, don't you? At least until you move into the dorm."

"Dorm??"

I was already regretting not having read the contract.

"Yes, aren't you aware? All students at Cyber Lily Academy are required to live in dorms. Even the male students."

"Cyber Lily that's…"

"The military academy? Yes, you'll be starting as a Mechagear Engineering Major there tomorrow. Didn't you read the contract?"

"You know I didn't read it, I've been sitting here the whole time and it's longer than the Bible."

"Oh well. You signed—"

"What a minute. Isn't Cyber Lily Academy an all-girls school? I could've sworn I read that somewhere."

"It was, until this coming semester. You will be part of the first class to accept males in the long history of the school. This is great, you can even return the broach to Snow Solnya in-person. I believe you will be in the same class."

"…"

That was the biggest surprise yet. The thought of seeing Ice again, or I should say Snow, was exhilarating. The last time I saw her, she was chasing me down Bitbolt Avenue with a large rifle. Then I was pulverized when I saved her life. I wondered how she'd react. Most normal girls would be grateful, but clearly Snow Solnya was not just a "normal girl".

"Don't worry about all that now. I've transferred the credentials to you. Do you know how to take the Metro into Neon Manhattan? The concierge at the Grand Solnya is already expecting you. Oh, and when you get to school tomorrow, tell them you're the S.H.I.N.J.I. Scholarship student. They'll know exactly what to do with you."