Cyberpunk Fantasy

Chapter 22 - Cyber Carnival

It's dark at the Madrid Zoo. A group of transhumanists huddle near each other after closing time. Whispering, a crafter, a dryad, a lion man, 2 tiger women & 3 bears folk, speak of how they intend to escape from continental Europe. "It's dangerous for us to stay together like this, we have to split up for the moment." the crafter says. From his right side print out 8 party flyers. "Here, I just downloaded from our contact, where we need to meet." he says, handing them out.

No sooner does he hand out the last one, & he is struck by a small silver dart. It's red contents spill into his bloodstream. Upon reacting with the nanites in his body, the tiny robots begin to unzip his DNA. Before the others have a chance to react, the Dryad is struck with another dart. She screams "RUUuun...." As the others scatter in different directions, her body falls to the ground, leaving changing color from a dark summer green, through yellow-orange, to red-brown, as her body becomes a wood husk. Banging into the ground, the vibrations shake the leaves from her. Blowing away in the wind, past the sparking exposed circuitry, some of the pieces of leaves stick to the spilled organic material of the crafter's body.

From her current vantage point, the nun could no longer see any targets. They were faster than she had anticipated. As the nun in white & orange jumps down from the building she had purchased on, the leaves blow past her feet. Walking over to the wood husk & fried mechanisms, she scouts out the area, to see that she is alone. She feels confident & that no one else is around & bends over. Picking up one of the 2 cards left behind, she smiles widely. As she walks out of the zoo, she changes the playlist on her iPod, attached to her upper right arm, to Frank Sinatra.

Later that night at the underground dance event, Cyber Carnival, the MC of the party is thanking the last performers as they leave the stage. The crowd ready for the headliner, cheers. "WHAT! UGH! YEAH! without further ado, the last man on Earth to spin real records! DJ SEERING!!" The crowd cheers again. As his fluorescent orange & metallic green Sion backs out on to the stage. Transforming before the audience, the truck splits in the middle & pops out speakers in the front & on the sides. Seering's hat, slightly covering his face in shadows from the lights coming on above him, comes into view as his driver's seat slides in front of his decks. With one record in each hand, he lays them on the turntables. A low hum of ambient music resonates from the stage. Upon dropping the base, the whole dance floor erupts into a brilliant chaos of clowns & other beautiful costumes falling to the rhythm.

Regrouping on the dance floor, the transhumanists spiral & slide through the crowd until they meet just back a few rows from center stage. Using their WiFi they link together, joining mind to mind. *Our contact is the promoter of this party, he'll get us out of Spain, to England, I'm going to go meet him now. Keep dancing & have a good time. We're not leaving until he does, which may be, not until the party ends. Be right back.* The cyber lion dances around until he makes his way backstage. A large man in an OuterTech strength prosthetic stands in front of a door marked V.I.P. The cyber-lion takes out a P$100, showing how the eye on the pope's profile is cut out of it & hands it to the bouncer. Stuffing it in his pocket with one hand, the big man opens the door with the other & lets him pass.

Vedren & Funfetti finish making out. He looks up at the Cyber-lion, "What are you doing here? I didn't book you for tonight's entertainment." jokingly, Funfetti winks. Funfetti then gets up & hugs the cyber-lion. Vedren then hugs him too & begins purring. "Sorry to hear about Cypris & Danny, Bro. Tonight's drive is going to be long enough without looking at those 2 empty seats."

At the front of the club, the nun pricks a bouncer at the front door with the injection ring in her hand. By the time he turned to hit whoever it was that poked him, he was all ready to accept her instructions. "Attack the other bouncer." As the fight breaks out, she ducks past the distracted greeters.