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  As the center and nearby restaurants filled up when the five o’clock shift let out, she found herself drawn to the gaming counter. Anti-gravity bowling wasn’t for her, but betting on it was much more entertaining. The cheers and moans as people wiped out helped her push aside the worry that she couldn’t do anything about.

  “Are you going to watch the game all night or bet on it?” a short islander asked. Her pretty, petite features were overshadowed by the woman’s brisk manner. “Huh?”

  Feeling like she could do just as well as the semi-drunk people around her, she said, “Sure?”

  The woman placed Ari’s hand on the scanner. It beeped with a green reading.

  “Yes. Good credit. What do you want to bet?”

  Ari scanned the board looking at the upcoming matches, realizing she had no idea what to do.

  “Come on. I don’t have all day.”

  “Yes, you do, Oliana. It’s our job.” A man stepped up to Ari’s side. “I’m Tamar. Forgive my sister. She’s used to dealing with the belligerent all night and forgets we have other customers too. Do you want a recommendation?”

  “It would help. I’m new to all of this.”

  “Number forty-five’s breath reeked of alcohol when he registered. I think the only reason he’s competing is because he’s tired of fighting against gravity. He’s one drink away from falling over.”

  “Thanks for the tip.” She placed her bet with Oliana and a few minutes later was ecstatic to find she won.

  She people-watched the rest of the night. Measuring up the contestants’ build and guessing on how they will do. She even placed some bets on the VR gaming going on. People could watch inside the game and place bets as the game went on. After watching Tessa’s game for hours at school, Ari knew what to look for and made out pretty well with that. Most people left her alone, only Oliana and Tamar make the rounds to offer her drinks and congratulate her.

  At eleven o’clock she called it.

  “No more? Come on, the next one will be a big one.” Oliana said.

  “Sorry, I have to meet a friend.”

  “Like that?” The woman looked Ari’s outfit up and down like a disgruntled mother.

  “Yes, I don’t have much else right now.”

  “There’s a shop down the street. You don’t want a man to think you are cheap and easy.” With a dismissive wave of her hand, she moved on to another customer.

  Maybe the woman was right. As a romantic guest, she sure didn’t look the part. Jumping into the store, she picked up a pair of jeans and a dark blue shirt. It didn’t scream date, but it was practical, so Ari could always wear it later. She usually chose her clothes from a screen, so picking them out in person was a nice change of pace.

  A few minutes later, she entered Vinh’s apartment corridor. Sleek gray tile, highlighted in soft lights, gave it a nice calming atmosphere. Unlike Ari’s rooms though, these had no view. Just gray walls with different panels highlighting community events. She pressed her hand on the panel to the left of the door to let him know she arrived. Soon the door opened, and she stepped through.

  She didn’t know what she expected Vinh’s room to look like. Maybe a high-tech automated room where he didn’t even have to brush his own teeth? Instead cartoon graphics covered the walls, and the rest was covered with… junk. Maybe not junk, she found a computer drive on one counter next to a bowl.

  “In here,” he hollered from the next room.

  She headed into his bedroom, where the surfaces were just as cluttered. “Don’t they have a cleaning bot you can use? Or maybe a closet I can put these clothes in.” She held up the clothes he lent her.

  “Not one I trust. The chute is in there.” He pointed to the hole in the wall partially covered by a shirt. “Last time they cleaned, I couldn’t find stuff for a month.”

  Ari doubted that but didn’t want to criticize him as he was about to put his neck on the line for her. “How can we talk to Tessa from here? I thought—”

  He spun around. “Every night at 11:30 they send a backup of the daily files to the mainland. I have a friend who works in the backup department. He’s willing to dump our records between 11:30 and midnight for a price.”

  “And what would that price be?”

  “It should only cost a week of work for you.”

  “Of course. But aren’t they going to trace where my money went to?” Money didn’t matter to her right now, but she didn’t want to get Vinh in trouble if she could help it.

  “He can run it through the center under gaming or something. And this way, you can have a conversation instead of a message.”

  Ari grabbed a nearby chair and, after moving the pile of junk on it to the nearby table, pulled it up next to Vinh. “How are we going to reach her?”

  “Through her game. She’s on it nightly. Just ask for a private room.”

  After adjusting the headset, she put in an extra pair of gaming contacts he had and wrist sensors. He planned on joining the game too with his own gear.

  “Are you familiar with the game? It’s a basic RPG.”

  “Yeah, I’ve played before.” She turned on the game and her world changed around her. Tessa’s game wasn’t as immersive as a VR, but with excellent graphics, it was the closest thing to it.

  Ari and Vinh dropped in the game atop of a cliff. Below them, a battle raged on: above them, a dark icy mountain with mysterious challenges. The choices were clear: prove oneself in battle or fight your fears of the unknown in the mountains above. Each of them were an elf type species with basic armor they could only upgrade after they earn enough points. They picked the elves because they were simple characters to create with decent speed and fighting ability.

  Vinh, looking particularly tall and muscular, turned in her direction. “Hurry and request the audience with the King.”

  “Of course.” She tapped her wrist on the table in front of her to access her menu. She sent a message to Tessa, or King Vega, requesting an audience. The subject held the word Oya in all caps. Hundreds of people requested an audience; she just hoped Tessa saw hers before midnight.

  When she returned to the game, Vinh’s sword was drawn as he faced the mountain. “Some people decided against the mountain and are on their way back down to battle.”

  Three Fae creatures hurried down the slope. One looked like a tree sprite, the other two’s green skin had Ari guessing earth sprites. She didn’t play the game enough to know for sure what happened if she died in here. They just had to survive until Tessa got their message. Ari didn’t have time to wait for re-entrance to the game and send a new message from a whole new character if she died.

  Vinh took point and obviously had enough hours gaming to handle himself. The tree sprite ducked left and headed straight for Ari. Sword out, she cut towards him. While slicing off one of his limbs, another branch reached out and cut her from behind. Stupid.

  She stepped out of range and held a more defensive position. This time she saw the extra limb as she feigned then changed direction. Unfortunately, the tree sprite stepped out of range. Before it could strike again, it fell in a pile of ash at Ari’s feet, along with the Fae that Vinh was fighting.

  “What the—”

  Vinh couldn’t finish his sentence before they were both sucked into a meeting with his Highness, or hers, really. Ari wondered why Tessa had picked the title of King, but it didn’t matter. Her androgynous character sat upon the throne with long purple hair tied in a braid on her shoulder. Her sharp, oversized features looked masculine, but the long eyelashes and gold nails that matched her crown held a feminine touch.

  “What brings you to my realm, dear Oya?” Tessa continued to use Ari’s old gamer name, which made her believe this game may not be secure. Ari could play along.

  “My family is missing.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “At least from my end they are.”

  Tessa stood and came down from her throne, a tall golden staff in hand. A slight sparkling illusion surro
unded her body. Sick of the illusions, Ari wished to talk to Tessa face to face, just like she had for hours on end when they were roommates at school. “Can you cut these out?” Ari motioned to her costume.

  “Sorry. This is a program, not a VR. I have not coded your real body and I don’t care to do mine.”

  “I don’t mind,” Vinh said, sitting in a nearby velvet chair.

  “Of course you like it, you look like a porn star.” Ari rolled her eyes.

  “Back at you.”

  “Whatever.” Ari turned to Tessa. “Have you been in contact with my brother?”

  “Not recently. A week ago, when I talked to him, he was going into deep hiding. Maybe out of the country. I gave him some money.”

  The pressure on Ari’s chest lightened. “Really?”

  “Yes. He offered to work it off in romantic favors, but I declined.”

  “Sounds like Marco.” Ari took a seat in a nearby chair, some of the stress and worry melting off her shoulders. Maybe VisionTech was right. If they can’t find him, then neither could anyone else.

  “He usually checks in every couple weeks or so. Want me to pass anything along?”

  “I’ll forward you some money. Just tell him to stay out of trouble.”

  “Don’t think that’s Marco’s style.”

  “True.” Ari chuckled thinking of all the trouble Marco got in as a child. She turned to Tessa, grateful for all she had done. “Thanks for your help. You work for your dad now?”

  “After I was kicked out of school, I focused on my brand. After my dad saw my sales, he offered me my own division.” She rolled her eyes as she absently spun her staff. “Now it’s one of the most profitable divisions. Wife Number Four is hating me right now. It’s great.”

  “Not to interrupt, but we need to go,” Vinh said. “I don’t want to push our luck.”

  “Alright.” Ari turned back to Tessa. “What’s the best way to stay in touch with you? I can’t make this a regular thing, staying in Vinh’s room this late.”

  Tessa stared at the engravings on her gold staff. “Do you have access to an elite VR?”

  Ari glanced at Vinh, unsure of what she was allowed to say to Tessa. Granted, she was already breaking a million rules of her contract today. “Do you mean VLEX?”

  “That’s one of them. I don’t go in myself, but my father has an office in there for messages, meetings and whatever. Look up the CEO of Ryope Industries, a subsidiary of my father’s corporation. I’ll get your message.”

  Ari could somehow manage that. “I’ll be in touch then. You don’t know what this means to me.”

  “Don’t worry. I’m even trying to get Marco to work for me and finally put his shady skills to honest work.”

  “Thanks again.” Ari reached out to hug Tessa.

  Even though Tessa wasn’t known for her touchy feely behavior, she returned the hug. “Just take care of yourself. That’s what your mom would want me to say.”

  Ari laughed. Tears pooled in the corner of her eyes at the idea of her mother.

  “We need to go,” Vinh said.

  “Okay. Give them my love, Tessa.”

  “I will.”

  Pulling out of the game was hard. It was only a game, Ari reminded herself. Tessa didn’t even look like herself, but still… it was Tessa. Ari took off the gear, missing her old roommate.

  “You alright?” Vinh leaned over and touched her arm. “You know I don’t do crying girls very well.”

  Realizing her cheeks were wet, she wiped at her eyes. “I’m good. Thanks for this. I hope I don’t get you in trouble.”

  “What’s a little trouble when it comes to a friend?”

  Chapter Twelve

  The next morning, Ari pulled herself out of bed and wondered if they made a patch with straight caffeine. Since she forgot to collect her uniform from the center lockers, she wore an older model Fit Suit, brushed her teeth, and ignored the messy hair. She refused to apologize for yesterday. She did what she had to do. They kept her trapped like a lab rat, isolated and alone. When she reached Niomi’s lab, she steadied her resolve as she marched inside.

  Niomi’s steely gaze focused on Ari. “Did you enjoy your temper tantrum yesterday?”

  “Really?” Ari wished she’d had another cup of coffee before she dealt with this. She stopped and started again. “So anytime I escape my cage, you’re going to call it a temper tantrum? My family is missing.”

  “Your cage?” Niomi motioned to the window in the back of her room. “The ocean at your doorstep, your boyfriend at your call. Is this what you call a cage?”

  “Yes, if I can’t leave unescorted? You trust me in the VR but not in the community center.”

  “We were just limiting your exposure not banning it. Your work now is so much more important than gambling on games.”

  “So, I’m bound to never have friends?”

  Ari bristled at the idea that Niomi tracked her, even if limited.

  Her trainer didn’t notice though and continued the lecture. “Oh, by the looks of your late-night tryst, it seems you became better friends with Vinh.”

  “We’re just friends.”

  “If you pull that again, Vinh will be re-assigned. Romances are forbidden with personal designers. If you want to keep Vinh as your tech liaison, keep it to one boy.”

  Ari bit her lip to keep her initial retort in. She didn’t want Niomi to think it was anything else. “Are we done? Or do we not have to work at this ungodly hour?”

  “It’s not my fault you only got two hours of sleep.” Niomi turned to her console and, with a flick of her wrist, her screen displayed a man. “You have a new assignment today. We’ve got a short window of opportunity to sit in on a vote. You’ll be Representative Tao.”

  “Tao?” She didn’t think he was one of the main profiles she’d memorized, though after focusing so hard on Kari the other twenty-five tended to blur together.

  “Yes. I wish we had more time to work on this, but we don’t. You’ll only be in for a couple of hours today. He’s an older man so move slow. We have a program to help with his accent.” Niomi handed her a small screen with a picture of him. “Here is his file. Look over it. If anyone asks you something you don’t know, feign not feeling well, mention heartburn.”

  Ari scanned his file. Two children, one boy and one girl. He had three grandchildren. Wife of 30 years. Worked in the state department for most of his life and recently assigned as a representative. She didn’t have the time to memorize co-workers or acquaintances but studied their faces so she’d recognize them. “You said something about a vote? Are you sure I’m ready for this?”

  “You have an assistant who will direct you to the meeting. Tao rarely goes in VLEX and is only there for the vote. Your vote will be ‘Yes’ as we expect Tao’s would be. It’s important to see the other votes. Remember any ‘No’ votes and any conversations you overhear.”

  Ari felt overwhelmed and underprepared, but Niomi didn’t seem to care. She directed Ari to the chair. At least they didn’t need a patch since she wouldn’t be as long.

  “Tao wouldn’t take notes, but if you need to, then do so. You can transfer them out if you need. We need the details of the bill and the votes. Good luck.” Niomi plugged her in.

  Ari took a deep breath and plunged herself into the VR. She found herself sitting at a sleek black desk. It was bare except for a single screen set off to the side.

  An Asian man entered the room, in a simple black suit. “Glad to see you made it alright, sir.”

  From the movement of the man’s lips, Ari knew the translator Niomi sent her with was working. She nodded and scanned the screen in front of her for any news or information she would need but found only messages from other representatives discussing their worry about the Roman and Middle Eastern votes.

  “Are you ready, sir?” The man, presumably Tao’s assistant, stood with the door open.

  Ari stood with a slow precise movement, hoping this man didn’t know Tao too well. Tao
took the lead, which could be a problem as Ari wasn’t familiar with this office. Gratefully, the elevator was within sight. They headed downstairs. Niomi had made Ari memorize everything she could about VLEX, so she was comfortable leading the way to the United Nations building that held the political forums and votes.

  People escorted her inside, her assistant—she found out his name was Chi from overhearing another person—remained by her side. Inside the large building the sleek silver design shone on every surface. People of every race moved with purpose, only conversing in hushed tones.

  Ari stopped for a minute in surprise. Next to an older woman was Hailey with her brown hair wrapped in a bun. Hailey glanced her way but didn’t appear to recognize Ari. Before her staring became awkward, Ari continued forward, grateful Chi didn’t ask any questions.

  In his personal voting room, there were drinks and a small sitting area sectioned off containing one chair, obviously for Tao. Stepping inside, she realized the room opened to a large arena. It was more of a private suite where everyone could see each other.

  A single podium stood in the center with a dark-skinned fellow. Once in her chair, she viewed the screen to her right. Unfortunately, the wording was in a different language. She traced a finger down the screen and realized she’d have to look at the code to decipher it.

  Chi stood behind her. “Are you alright, sir? Can I get you anything?”

  She froze for a moment, not realizing Chi was so near. Remembering Niomi’s advice she rubbed a spot on her chest and stared forward. “A drink will do.”

  As she sipped some sort of tea, she read through the information on the screen. The bill that was up for a vote dealt with new virtual reality research that the Russian States were accused of. There weren’t specific details on what they were researching. The wording was filled with so much legalese it was hard to read.

  Ari was grateful that once the proceedings started Chi went into the back room, as it gave her time to copy the files discreetly. As the man in the center of the arena spoke, the bill appeared on the screen. He called on the author of the bill to speak. Ari focused more on copying the transcript as it came through on her screen.