As nighttime fell, Riza and Pilo had flown down to the main city of Cath, a luxurious orbital city with pearl white high-rise buildings and suspended walkways throughout it. Unlike most cities, there was no ground level in Cath– no surface at all, but bridges interconnecting various buildings and segments of the city. Some were exterior, with gardens and tiled walkways that gave it a sense of being grounded, but there was always a ledge to look over that revealed a sheer drop into outer space.
Looking up had the opposite effect, as above head was the snow-riddled mountain peaks of the planet, Cath. Lifeless, but beautiful, the purple and pink sunset glistened between the pale Alps, greeting Riza and Pilo as they arrived in the city. They may have been tourists, but they were surprised by how obvious that was with their cargo crew and research-based uniforms they wore among the passing garbs of thin silk and royal blues. Suits and dresses shaped like layers of spiralling plant life and the tiniest hints of gold as a reminder of the wealth citizens had accrued. It wasn't just fashion, it was a statement. One that clearly said ‘you are not one of us’.
They didn't pay Riza or Pilo much attention, likely because they were beneath receiving it, and as they walked through the city from where they'd made port, they took in the alternate lifestyle presented before them. Riza had seen wealth, but had never considered it could be so… clean. So polished and comfortable. As they walked along a sky bridge, she stopped to take a closer look at the flowers that decorated the walkway.
“All real,” She muttered to herself in disbelief.
She'd never seen this much plantlife in all of her travels, and knowing none of it grew here naturally made that all the more surprising. There weren't many things that could remind her she was from Cintri. That she was a Rim. From a world of poverty and struggle with nothing beyond the red dirt and clay housing that rewarded inhabitants with lung diseases and perpetual stuffiness.
“There it is,” Pilo pointed to the walkway in the distance that connected to a rather short, but stubby building.
“That's the lab?”
“Yeah,”
At first, she was surprised it wasn't as tall as those that surrounded it, until she noticed it was twice the width of the others and belonged to what she had presumed was a small team of people. Turns out she had it all wrong, and the sheer scale of Drop Racing as a sport exposed her small thinking yet again. She had visited key Kythera facilities that were this size, and they were often dedicated to planetary research. A racing team having a building this large seemed like overkill. As they approached the slick facility, they slowly took in the vine-infused interior that gave a heavenly impression upon entering. The large glass windows poured the last remnants of the cool magenta sunset throughout the interior like a glass of ice water that brought the hanging vines their life force.
“Up there,” Pilo pointed to the sky, stories up ahead. “There's a vehicle entryway, the lab must be in that area too.”
“Alright, I'll find the drive and open up the entrance,” Riza said with her eyes still fixated on the streams of light. “You get the ship ready,”
“Copy that, Boss.” He said as he stepped away.
“Okay,” She murmured to herself, a bit anxious. “I can do this,”
She approached the scanners somewhat unconfidently. As she removed the tag from her pocket, a security guard approached her, and she tensed up.
“Jacket,” He said as he waved a finger.
“Huh?”
“Remove your jacket, please, Ma'am, and place it on the table,”
“Oh, uhh,” She followed his orders.
“Go ahead and scan your ID.”
“Right,” She said as he stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the other passersby.
“You new here?”
“Something like that,”
“For future reference, the sanitation crew is to use the underground entrance.”
“Oh,” His words stung, but after noticing the attire of the city's residents, she could see why he'd presume such. “Sorry about that,”
“No worries,” He shrugged, “Most of the staff are aboard the DRC, so it'll be our secret.”
Riza nodded, somewhat feeling a gust of relief from her anxiety. She proceeded to place the ID on the scanner, and it blinked green, swinging open the glass turnstiles.
“Have a good one,” He said as he walked away.
“You too,”
She immediately made her way to the information desk. There was nobody in sight, and after glancing over her shoulder to check if the coast was clear, she entered the booth to operate the computer.
_INFORMATION DESK - MONTOYA LABS
_SEARCH_
Riza took a moment to think, and in that same moment, she noticed another, small grey and Honey orb floating overhead that made her think she may be acting somewhat suspiciously. It didn’t seem completely focused on her, floating higher and down a nearby hall not long after she noticed it.
_ANTI-GRAVITY_
The computer returned to sets of search results.
Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
_1. STEERING
_2. DRIVE
She selected the option for the drive, and a map appeared before her with the directions to the lab.
_LAB K53
She erased the search and input a new one.
_SHIP LOT_
_1. ENTRANCE
_2. STORAGE
_3. REGISTRATION
She selected the first option, and it returned another map with the directions to the control room
_CONTROL ROOM [7th Floor]
She nodded and cleared the search before leaving the booth. The entire office block had little to no people in it, and now that the sun had fully set, she was able to discern the security guards' whereabouts by the moving glow of their waist-torches. The control room was on the seventh floor, and she made her way up the large, glass-faced elevator that overlooked the wide belly of the architecture.
“Pilo, do you copy?” She whispered as she reached the seventh floor. The doors peeled open, and she cautiously scanned the area in case of any security guards.
“Copy, Boss. You in?”
“Yeah, I'm headed to the control room.”
“Ships in the sky. Ready when you are,”
The control room was the only room on the floor, and upon entry, she realised why. It expanded like a hall, where in the centre was a platform with five seats and more screens than she cared to count. She took a seat in the centre chair and activated the computers with the keycard. The system came to life and all of the screens activated, but in doing so, she felt a subtle hum at the back of her mind– similar to the sensation of her chip.
Subtle colour shifts in the hue of the light and screens went from white, to blue, to green, to a soft purple, before returning to white. She grunted in discomfort, squinting her now watery eyes as the sensations slowly dissipated and wondering if she needed to refill her resequencer. Focus, she muttered under her breath as she began accessing the computer. It wasn't too complicated for her to find the controls for the shipping lot's gate, and when she did, the loud rumble and clanging that emanated from the floors above confirmed the gate had opened up.
“Alright, it's opening,” Riza said over comms.
“Copy that, en route,” Pilo responded.
“What's open?” A curious voice asked from behind Riza.
She turned in a panic, fists clenched and ready to protect herself, when she noticed the familiar, curly hair and peach-toned skin before her. It was Izzy Montoya, dressed in a rather fancy looking trench coat etched with silver and flowing over the baggy jeans and cropped, sporty shirt underneath. Riza stared, star-struck again by her presence as she watched Izzy wander around the control room as if it were her first time there.
“Huh?” Riza stuttered in confusion.
“The ship lot, I guess,” She shrugged as she turned to Riza. “Yknow, I thought I recognised you when I saw you in the DRC. But, I needed my bee to get a proper look.”
“The drone… That was yours?” Riza recalled when she fell on the floor.
“Bee,” She corrected Riza, “Yeah. They're mine,”
On cue, the drone and three identical ones entered the control room, scanning the room with a similar curiosity as Izzy had when she'd first entered.
“So, what? You followed me here.”
“My Bee's been following you since it saw you. I got curious.” She looked at Riza, “You're the chick who killed all those people on Prion-A, aren't you?”
“Huh?”
“Well, I know you are since I already ID'd you, but…” She paused, looking Riza deeply in the eyes as a suspicion grew, “You don't look like a killer.”
“You don't know that,” Riza tried to feign confidence.
“Are you?” Izzy asked, a smug smile peeling across her face.
“Why are you here?” Riza squinted. “Did you call security? Or the Atlas? Is this a distraction?”
“No, no,” Izzy waved her hand, “I get a little bored up there,”
“Then what do you want?”
“Sheesh, so defensive. I just have some questions.”
“Well, I don't have time for them,” Riza said, turning back to the computer.
“I think you do. Unless you want security interrupting your little… Uhh, heist?”
Riza grunted, now a little annoyed, “Fine,”
“Did you do it? Did you sink the mining rig?”
“No, I didn't.”
“So, Kythera is framing you?”
“Yes,”
“Why?”
“I don't know,”
“Then what are you doing here?”
“Stealing your AG drive,”
“It's experimental, you know that, right?”
“No, but it's our best bet at getting to Silic.”
“What's in Silic?”
“Information.”
Izzy squinted her eyes, as though she was trying to read deeper into Riza's words, but she'd laid it all out, as it was.
“I've never been to Silic.” Izzy's demeanour shifted.
“Yeah, you have. You raced there twice this season.”
Izzy slowly shook her head, “The only city I've set foot in is Cath.”
“Seriously?” Riza asked.
Izzy sluggishly nodded her head, and Riza could see her confidence withdrawing.
“Well, you're not missing out on much. Silic is pretty shitty,”
A large burst echoed as the sound of thrusters descended into the building.
“I'm in, Boss,”
“The drives in Lab K53, I'll meet you there,”
“Who was that, Pilo?” Izzy asked.
“How do you know his name?”
“You're both on the public wanted registry… You know that, right? You’re a wanted criminal.”
“I wouldn't have guessed you're so into the news.”
“I'm not. Just interested in this.”
“Why?” Riza said as she left the control room and made her way to the elevator.
She watched as Izzy and her drones followed, sweeping everywhere she went like a skyborn security team.
“My family's about to sell the company to Kythera. I'm not a fan of the idea.”
“So, what? You want to convince them not to?”
“Ha!” Izzy's laugh awkwardly reverberated within the elevator, “My parents don't give a damn about my input, I just… I don’t know,”
The elevator doors opened as they arrived on the ninth floor, and Riza stepped out, trying to remember the directions from the map–
“It's this way,” Izzy said, walking ahead of Riza.
“You're helping me rob you?”
Izzy didn't respond, and when they arrived at the lab door, Izzy opened it for both of them. The lab was smaller than she'd have expected, and on the far side, it had a large window that looked out into the shipping lot where a large crane extended overhead, revealing that the lab was ceilingless.
“Riza!” Pilo yelled as he entered the lab, “We're going to have to hurry. Security is onto us.”
Pilo turned his head to Riza’s accomplice, and his face flushed, “Holy shit, Izzy Montoya?!”
