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It looks like it is a good day for technocracy fiction :D this is the second bit on my friend's page today anyway! Tis section was really easy to write. I wish my thesis was so easy. Maybe its's because I don't need as many footnotes for this. I wish I had more mage books though. I really ought to have picked up those convention books when I was in TO :p Anyway, for those of you who actually read these things, enjoy :D Comments always welcome.
Pieces 1-6
Pieces Seven
It's been three days, and Anna hasn't called back. It's difficult not to know what is going on, but it can only be harder for her. I owe her patience, but she is never far from my thoughts. At least, since I gave her the cell number, I am freer to roam. I am still in Portland, but I have been going out regularly, visiting places from the past. We used to come here often, on weekend trips to get us away from the city, and work.
Tonight I had dinner at an Indian restaurant we both used to enjoy. I memory of the place is weak, and I was hoping I could remember more, but the experiment failed. The food was good, I suppose, but I did not derive any special enjoyment from it. I have yet to find anything that does. Perhaps I just don't remember what 'happy' truly is.
I have rented a room at an independent hotel, the Parkside Retreat. They offer a free wireless internet service, but I have not taken advantage of it, for the same reason that I am loathe to use the cell phone. I am hoping to be left alone. My room is on the fourth floor, and looks out across the river towards Fort Vancouver. I stop at the shop downstairs to purchase several newspapers, to keep me occupied for the evening. I browsed through the novels when I first checked in, but there was nothing that interested me. The even fiction falls flat in comparison to my own experiences. The television shows little but mindless garbage, and even the popular crime and medical dramas fall flat for me. I see them only as propaganda, and the fail to hold my interests. I know the lies and corruption behind what they are selling. The news is not much better, but it is all that remains save sports, which can be alright depending on what is playing.
As the elevator approaches my floor, I notice that something is amiss. I can't immediately identify what. My instincts tell me to be alert; that I should scan the area and know what to expect. I can sense a hundred normal minds here, and three others who have shut me out. The elevator has no emergency stop button, and it is fast. The doors open, and standing across the hall is a black suited operative. There is no time, and the 0elevator is frozen regardless. The doors refuse to close.
"Agent Graves, this way please." He is tense, ready for any action needed, but he has little to fear from me right now. I am not armed, but it would be difficult for three of them to keep me against my will, and they should know that. If they'd wanted me dead, it would be a different set up. They would have been more careful, and less public. I will see what they want.
I follow the agent down the hall to a room three doors down from mine, 409. Another agent, this one a woman, is stationed outside. She opens the door for me, and I enter. The door is closed behind me, and they remain outside. Inside the room, Agent Michael Xi is waiting for me. He is typing something on a light keyboard when I enter, sitting at the desk in the corner, but he looks up and shuts it off as the door closes.
"Agent Graves," he says, and sighs. ''It's been a while, Dan."
"Six years. What are you doing here?" Mike Xi was a member of my amalgam in Seattle, before I was reprogrammed and reassigned. He was one of the last people I talked to before I went to the hospital to see Anna, and it is quite surprising to see him here. Unlike the other two agents, Xi is dressed in grey. His father's family is Chinese, and he takes after them in his appearance, though his eyes are blue and his skin paler. He is approximately my build and height. He is a specialist in communication networks and radio infiltration.
"Alot's happened since you've been away. I'm one of two senior admin's in the region now, lucky you."
"Lucky?" I wonder if it is even him at all. It could be a clone. I look him over more closely, but it always difficult to detect a construct. A genscan might show that they have been artificially aged, but that's beyond me. All I can do is guess from how he acts. Mike was always more relaxed, more charismatic than other agents.
"Lucky because I pulled your file, but I know enough to read between the lines. I know what you're after here, even if the officials don't, or aren’t saying. It means I can tell you: you're not going to find it. And it's going to get you nothing but grief if you do."
"I can't see how it is any of the order's concern." I do, of course, I just wish I didn't.
"I know you're smarter than that. Call it what you want, send them what paperwork you like - they just see you as a rogue agent. And now, they're going to see a rogue who's gone off to seek out some enemy sympathizer and, hell, for all I know, make nice with her new little deviant family. Anna has to be off limits, Daniel, and it's not just for your sake."
"Are you threatening her?" I understand what he is saying, but not why. He shakes his head.
"I liked Anna. I always thought you really lucked out, that you must have done something really great to get into that program. After you were reassigned so quickly, I tried to look into why, and was blocked at every turn. I tried to check up on her, thinking I might find some clue there, but she was gone too. The little branch of the lab they had her tech-ing in was completely closed out. I got advised to drop it… and it came from high enough that I did. I was smart enough not to mess with the Order, at least. I hardly even thought about it again until a few weeks ago."
That is more recent than I expected. It took me a while to decide that I did need to do this. When I got out, I tried to retire officially, but it wouldn't go through. I gave up, and walked out, and tried to disappear for a while. That was months ago, now, so why the recent interest? He watches me process this for a moment, and continues.
"You're file is filled with more black lines than some of the things I've seen on the Kennedy assassination, but its there if they know what you're looking for. It took them awhile to analyze the mess you left them after your Void debriefing. After they realized that you'd broken through the reprogramming, they forwarded your files out this way, because this is where Anna lives."
"And you don't have bigger problems to worry about?" I don't know all the details, but I do know that there was a strong incursion attempt in India a few years ago, and that the order lost a lot of good resources trying to contain it. Since then, their dominance in the war has been a lot weaker. There are large gaps in the flow of information between sectors, and worse, the Syndicate was nearly completely crippled, so funding has been severely slashed. I can only imagine how some of the conventions might have reacted to that.
"There's always bigger problems. But sometimes, the theory goes, it's good to focus on the small ones. Gives people a sense that they can still accomplish something, and it reminds them that we always look after our own. The fact is this: you would make a good example. I know it's your family, but it doesn't make you a sympathetic figure. And they are deviant. Anna's a carrier, and that makes your kid a potential. Her brother manifested. It looks bad for you, and that's bad for them. Is this registering at all?" Xi is capable of a calm animation. He makes his point well. But I can't give up on this. He is studying me carefully, watching my reactions. I know there is nothing for him to see.
"I understand." What more can I say? I need to rethink my approach, at the least. My peace of mind isn't worth Anna's life, or Danny's. Xi just shakes his head.
"They really worked you over, didn't they? You're like a stone. I'm telling you I might have to send people to cleanse your family… You were a good agent. I liked working with you. The report from your debriefing shows that you are most likely deeply emotionally depressed. It's common after long solo operations. It can be hard to readjust, but we can help you with this. *I'm* not going to waste you on a hack reprogramming job."
He seems sincere, but even if it is, I doubt it is his call to make. And it doesn't matter: I don't want back in. I don't want to be the one threatening people's children because they don't conform to some delusional fantasy that reality can be controlled.
"I can't do that, Xi."
"Well, you can. You won't. Fine. It’s not what I wanted to hear, but it's what I expected. So this is what I've got: I think that having you erased would be the neatest way to clean up this mess, but I also think that it would be a waste or resources, which is something we're lacking right now. It's not hat I'm going to do. I'll let you go for now. I'll let you go to Anna, if she'll have you, and if her deviant family doesn't tear you to pieces to protect their own dirty little secrets. But you will remember who you owe your security here to, and that outside of this sector, it's out of my hands."
Blackmail, or near enough to it, if he is really being as upfront as he claims. Maybe they are hoping to learn more about Anna's family through me, or are hoping to give me a false sense of security. Maybe Xi was hoping he could recruit me back, or that he can scare me into working for him regardless. It is also possible that he has been trying to scan me with some program or device attached to his computer, but I didn't detect anything, and I am confident in my ability to shield myself from such probing. "I'll keep that all in mind."
"Do that, Graves. I'll be in touch." With that, he secures his equipment, and the door opens behind me. The female operative holds it as Xi exits. I wait until I know they've left the hotel before returning to my own room.
Pieces 1-6
Pieces Seven
It's been three days, and Anna hasn't called back. It's difficult not to know what is going on, but it can only be harder for her. I owe her patience, but she is never far from my thoughts. At least, since I gave her the cell number, I am freer to roam. I am still in Portland, but I have been going out regularly, visiting places from the past. We used to come here often, on weekend trips to get us away from the city, and work.
Tonight I had dinner at an Indian restaurant we both used to enjoy. I memory of the place is weak, and I was hoping I could remember more, but the experiment failed. The food was good, I suppose, but I did not derive any special enjoyment from it. I have yet to find anything that does. Perhaps I just don't remember what 'happy' truly is.
I have rented a room at an independent hotel, the Parkside Retreat. They offer a free wireless internet service, but I have not taken advantage of it, for the same reason that I am loathe to use the cell phone. I am hoping to be left alone. My room is on the fourth floor, and looks out across the river towards Fort Vancouver. I stop at the shop downstairs to purchase several newspapers, to keep me occupied for the evening. I browsed through the novels when I first checked in, but there was nothing that interested me. The even fiction falls flat in comparison to my own experiences. The television shows little but mindless garbage, and even the popular crime and medical dramas fall flat for me. I see them only as propaganda, and the fail to hold my interests. I know the lies and corruption behind what they are selling. The news is not much better, but it is all that remains save sports, which can be alright depending on what is playing.
As the elevator approaches my floor, I notice that something is amiss. I can't immediately identify what. My instincts tell me to be alert; that I should scan the area and know what to expect. I can sense a hundred normal minds here, and three others who have shut me out. The elevator has no emergency stop button, and it is fast. The doors open, and standing across the hall is a black suited operative. There is no time, and the 0elevator is frozen regardless. The doors refuse to close.
"Agent Graves, this way please." He is tense, ready for any action needed, but he has little to fear from me right now. I am not armed, but it would be difficult for three of them to keep me against my will, and they should know that. If they'd wanted me dead, it would be a different set up. They would have been more careful, and less public. I will see what they want.
I follow the agent down the hall to a room three doors down from mine, 409. Another agent, this one a woman, is stationed outside. She opens the door for me, and I enter. The door is closed behind me, and they remain outside. Inside the room, Agent Michael Xi is waiting for me. He is typing something on a light keyboard when I enter, sitting at the desk in the corner, but he looks up and shuts it off as the door closes.
"Agent Graves," he says, and sighs. ''It's been a while, Dan."
"Six years. What are you doing here?" Mike Xi was a member of my amalgam in Seattle, before I was reprogrammed and reassigned. He was one of the last people I talked to before I went to the hospital to see Anna, and it is quite surprising to see him here. Unlike the other two agents, Xi is dressed in grey. His father's family is Chinese, and he takes after them in his appearance, though his eyes are blue and his skin paler. He is approximately my build and height. He is a specialist in communication networks and radio infiltration.
"Alot's happened since you've been away. I'm one of two senior admin's in the region now, lucky you."
"Lucky?" I wonder if it is even him at all. It could be a clone. I look him over more closely, but it always difficult to detect a construct. A genscan might show that they have been artificially aged, but that's beyond me. All I can do is guess from how he acts. Mike was always more relaxed, more charismatic than other agents.
"Lucky because I pulled your file, but I know enough to read between the lines. I know what you're after here, even if the officials don't, or aren’t saying. It means I can tell you: you're not going to find it. And it's going to get you nothing but grief if you do."
"I can't see how it is any of the order's concern." I do, of course, I just wish I didn't.
"I know you're smarter than that. Call it what you want, send them what paperwork you like - they just see you as a rogue agent. And now, they're going to see a rogue who's gone off to seek out some enemy sympathizer and, hell, for all I know, make nice with her new little deviant family. Anna has to be off limits, Daniel, and it's not just for your sake."
"Are you threatening her?" I understand what he is saying, but not why. He shakes his head.
"I liked Anna. I always thought you really lucked out, that you must have done something really great to get into that program. After you were reassigned so quickly, I tried to look into why, and was blocked at every turn. I tried to check up on her, thinking I might find some clue there, but she was gone too. The little branch of the lab they had her tech-ing in was completely closed out. I got advised to drop it… and it came from high enough that I did. I was smart enough not to mess with the Order, at least. I hardly even thought about it again until a few weeks ago."
That is more recent than I expected. It took me a while to decide that I did need to do this. When I got out, I tried to retire officially, but it wouldn't go through. I gave up, and walked out, and tried to disappear for a while. That was months ago, now, so why the recent interest? He watches me process this for a moment, and continues.
"You're file is filled with more black lines than some of the things I've seen on the Kennedy assassination, but its there if they know what you're looking for. It took them awhile to analyze the mess you left them after your Void debriefing. After they realized that you'd broken through the reprogramming, they forwarded your files out this way, because this is where Anna lives."
"And you don't have bigger problems to worry about?" I don't know all the details, but I do know that there was a strong incursion attempt in India a few years ago, and that the order lost a lot of good resources trying to contain it. Since then, their dominance in the war has been a lot weaker. There are large gaps in the flow of information between sectors, and worse, the Syndicate was nearly completely crippled, so funding has been severely slashed. I can only imagine how some of the conventions might have reacted to that.
"There's always bigger problems. But sometimes, the theory goes, it's good to focus on the small ones. Gives people a sense that they can still accomplish something, and it reminds them that we always look after our own. The fact is this: you would make a good example. I know it's your family, but it doesn't make you a sympathetic figure. And they are deviant. Anna's a carrier, and that makes your kid a potential. Her brother manifested. It looks bad for you, and that's bad for them. Is this registering at all?" Xi is capable of a calm animation. He makes his point well. But I can't give up on this. He is studying me carefully, watching my reactions. I know there is nothing for him to see.
"I understand." What more can I say? I need to rethink my approach, at the least. My peace of mind isn't worth Anna's life, or Danny's. Xi just shakes his head.
"They really worked you over, didn't they? You're like a stone. I'm telling you I might have to send people to cleanse your family… You were a good agent. I liked working with you. The report from your debriefing shows that you are most likely deeply emotionally depressed. It's common after long solo operations. It can be hard to readjust, but we can help you with this. *I'm* not going to waste you on a hack reprogramming job."
He seems sincere, but even if it is, I doubt it is his call to make. And it doesn't matter: I don't want back in. I don't want to be the one threatening people's children because they don't conform to some delusional fantasy that reality can be controlled.
"I can't do that, Xi."
"Well, you can. You won't. Fine. It’s not what I wanted to hear, but it's what I expected. So this is what I've got: I think that having you erased would be the neatest way to clean up this mess, but I also think that it would be a waste or resources, which is something we're lacking right now. It's not hat I'm going to do. I'll let you go for now. I'll let you go to Anna, if she'll have you, and if her deviant family doesn't tear you to pieces to protect their own dirty little secrets. But you will remember who you owe your security here to, and that outside of this sector, it's out of my hands."
Blackmail, or near enough to it, if he is really being as upfront as he claims. Maybe they are hoping to learn more about Anna's family through me, or are hoping to give me a false sense of security. Maybe Xi was hoping he could recruit me back, or that he can scare me into working for him regardless. It is also possible that he has been trying to scan me with some program or device attached to his computer, but I didn't detect anything, and I am confident in my ability to shield myself from such probing. "I'll keep that all in mind."
"Do that, Graves. I'll be in touch." With that, he secures his equipment, and the door opens behind me. The female operative holds it as Xi exits. I wait until I know they've left the hotel before returning to my own room.
creative
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