Techno: Origin

Chapter 1: A Normal Day

It's the morning in Mirror City. The birds are singing beautifully as the sun rises for the day. The morning light shines off the chrome buildings into a small downtown apartment complex, illuminating the face of Mark Riker, a young man of the age of 18. With the light in his eyes, he groggily rolls over and slaps his screaming alarm clock. Before he can settle back to sleep, the cell phone on his nightstand chirps a text alert. He forces his eyes open to read the message from his best friend, Sarah:

"Almost done making breakfast! Thanks again for driving me to work while my car's in the shop! Glad you were able to fit me in before the big interview today!"

After reading this, Mark jolts awake. "SHIT, THE INTERVIEW," he thinks. He leaps out of bed and sprints to the shower, jumping into the freezing water. After a few minutes, he dries off and gets dressed. He falls a bit behind with the tie, but manages to almost get fully ready to leave when his door opens. He goes into the hall and freezes for a moment at the sight of his childhood best friend. He had been flustered by the sight of Sarah since the start of their senior year of school, leading him to only one conclusion. He's crushing. Hard. And honestly, why wouldn't he? Her chocolate brown hair glistens as he sweeps it over her left shoulder, and her sea green eyes always hold a spark of excitement, as well as something he could never put his finger on. It must have been a similar sense of humor, because Sarah turned out to be a real handful.

"Hey Sarah," he stumbles, forcing himself back to reality. "I'm just finishing up, but I'll be with you in a second." Sarah nods. "Let me just get this ready while you finish," she says. "Then we can eat and head out." Mark retreats as Sarah heads for the small kitchen. Mark goes and grabs his shoes, puts them on, and comes back to the kitchen. Sarah is just finishing putting the food on plates as he walks in, then hands one of the meals to Mark. "Hope you like it!" she says. "I always do," he replies.

Once they finish breakfast, Sarah rinses the dishes off in the sink as Mark grabs his own jacket. Sarah joins him at the door and puts her coat on as they walk to the elevator. They head over to Mark's car, a deep blue Charger, and get in. "So, are you nervous?" Sarah asks Mark as they pull out of the garage. "About what?" Mark replies quickly, briefly terrified that she had somehow figured out how he felt about her. "The moon falling out of orbit," she said sarcastically. "Your interview, dumbass. And don't give me the 'I don't get nervous' tough guy trash." Mark laughs to himself quietly. "Right, I knew that. And no, I'm not nervous, just... caffeinated," Sarah chuckles slightly at that last word. "Dammit Mark, why are you like this?" "'Why are we like this', you mean." Mark retorts. "Oh no, don't drag me down to your level. I'm clearly the sane one here."

"So," Sarah says. "Is M.A.I.N.E. ready for the demo?" Mark pulls out his cell phone. "Got her right here, charged and ready to go." Sarah grabs the phone. "Hey M.A.I.N.E., are you actually working? Or is Mark in hot water?" A woman's voice comes from the smartphone. "As you can see, Ms. Williamson, I'm functioning quite well. Thank you for showing concern." Sarah places the phone on the dashboard stand. "Nice to know you can finally do something without me," she says mockingly. "I may actually be able to leave you behind some day." "Oh please," Mark replies. "You're never gonna be able to leave me. I'm so lovable. Anyways, you want any music?" "Sure, but we're listening to the radio instead of your trashy playlists." Sarah flips on the radio as Mark flashes a sarcastic look of shock at her. "Trash? I'll have you know that my music is more than just memes." "Sure it is, Mark." "GOOD MORNING MIRROR CITY!" shouts Derek, the DJ for Mirror City's most popular music station. "I'M YOUR HOST, DJ DEREK! IT'S A BEAUTIFUL DAY WITH HIGHS IN THE MID 70S, THE PERFECT WEATHER FOR ANYTHING TO HAPPEN! FIRST UP TODAY IS THE SONG THAT'S BEEN TOPPING THE CHARTS ALL WEEK, EVER-- ," The radio cuts to static.

"Oh no, I guess we're gonna have to listen to my high art," chuckles Mark. Sarah smirks. "I guess my car isn't the only one that needs to go to the shop," "What are you talking about? It's probably solar activity or something. Right, M.A.I.N.E.?" The A.I. takes a few seconds to scan the area. "I'm not detecting anything that can interfere with radio signals, Mr. Riker." "Why do you betray me, M.A.I.N.E.? I thought we were friends. You're breaking my heart." Mark wails jokingly. "Ok, drama queen," says Sarah. "It's probably nothing. And besides, we're here."

Mark pulls up to the curb, and Sarah gives him a quick side hug before getting out. "Call me when you're done," she says. "I want to hear the good news. You deserve it more than anyone. And thanks again for the ride, I owe you one." With that, she shuts the door and heads to work."That's it," he thinks to himself. "I'm gonna ask her out after the interview... maybe. I don't know. WHY THE HELL IS THIS SO DIFFICULT?"

Mark continues driving for a few minutes until he arrives at Kronos Corps, the most advanced technological industry on the continent. He parks and stares intently at the towering monolith that is the Kronos Corps headquarters. "If they won't take me now, then they'll regret it eventually," he thinks to himself. A few beads of sweat form on his brow before he calmly wipes them off. "But I'm sure they'll hire me after I show them M.A.I.N.E."  He confidently takes the first step towards his future.