It's been ten days since Ari's disappearance, and I grow more worried with each passing day. I try not to let it bother me during my work, but it sure is stressing. Fortunately, Samza and Mezos haven't been sending weird emails or jacking our crypto wallets.
Milani never got all his money back. Instead, he flagged it as a tax write-off. It wasn't much anyway — just enough to buy a 20-year-old Civic, built before they spun off of Honda and became their own brand, like the Dodge Ram, the Hyundai Genesis, and the Chevy Corvette. Still, it could have been worse. He's lucky the value of his 69 Dogecoin inflated, recouping some of his losses.
I'm sitting in a company-owned air taxi with Ruby, her face shrouded by her porcelain Maestro's Mask, her metal cyborg body covered in a red hooded robe. We're heading to the Solstice Sky Labs. As the name suggests, it's a facility that hovers in air space. The International Civil Aviation Organization legally designates the Solstice Sky Labs as a corporate-owned airship, but it looks more like a hamlet on a metal floating island with small buildings on the landing area.
The pilot lands our ship in the landing zone and a pearlescent white, ultra-luxurious Ala~de~Edan Mazaalai autonomous SUV picks us up. The super-expensive vehicle brings Ruby and I to the headquarters for The Eyes of War, a mosque-like facility where Ruby and her advisers gather and talk about the upcoming WarGames season. Whenever there are suggestions for new rules, debates would ensue. I've been here before, but I can't say I like it. It feels too cult-like. Even the random prayer chants from Eyes cultists creeps me out.
We exit the vehicle and enter through tall golden double-doors. It feels like we're walking through a set of heavenly gates as the doors let out a low, reverberating creek as it opens.
Up ahead, natural white light illuminates the inner chambers, revealing ornamental accents of gold and red on white pillared structures.
Inside, a tall bald woman with dark brown skin and pale blue cybernetic eyes, donning a white ornamental robe with gold and red trimmings, and a golden circlet on her head, confronts us. The sun highlights the gloss of her shaved head.
"Ms. Octavia Cerayle," I greet, "How are things today?"
"Enlightening," Octavia says, her tone cold and formal. "My colleagues possess news worth sharing, Ms. Cithara Orphea. If you're wondering, the news pertains to Ari Kagura. Follow me." She motions with a fluid hand gesture.
Ruby and I follow as Octavia leads to the building's inner chamber.
"Such concerns also pertain to my sister, Livia. Mayhap, you might remember her," she says, continuing our walk.
My brows scrunch for a moment, wondering who Livia might be. If I recall, Livia Cerayle played for the Brick City Sirens of New Jersey. She was the Eastern Conference's top Tactician and one of the front-runners for this year's WarGames MVP Award. However, Livia died last month from a freak car accident. "I remember her," I say. "My condolences."
Octavia stops and turns her head, her eyes slanted in bitterness. "Your precious condolences are not required."
Well, excuse me if you have a steel pole stuck up your ass, I want to say to her snotty attitude. Instead, I ask, "How so?"
The tall woman returns her gaze forward and continues walking. "Our sources state my twin is alive and well. We shall explain more once we arrive at the command room. For now, I'm glad you have kept Ruby under control. We have heard of her recent manic episodes. It seems her visions are becoming more rampant."
"Yes," I answer. "While my colleagues and I have been doing what we can to quell her nightmares, I believe the best course of action is to deal with the source of her problems — and that involves a woman who Ruby refers to as Gunhild."
Octavia lets out a low hum. "Gunhild." She continues escorting Ruby and I to the command room.
Octavia, Ruby, and I arrive at the command center within the central core of Solstice Sky Labs. The room resembles a small conference hall with curved white benches arranged in a circle, surrounding the illuminated dais where Ruby and her cohorts discuss important matters. We reach the dais where a round pearlescent table stands, surrounded by a set of chairs. Ruby takes a seat on the largest chair — the Maestro's Chair, a gunmetal black chair with red accents.
I sit next to Ruby on a smaller metal chair, white with gold accents.
Octavia sits in the chair facing Ruby on the other end of the table.
Also present are five hooded advisers, one representing each of the conferences: US East, US West, European Union, Asian Oceanic, and South Africa.
"I'm glad everyone of importance can make it," Octavia says. "Let us begin. The first subject in this meeting pertains to a certain Milani Sorsha." The woman pushes a button the table, activating a holographic projector displaying a mugshot of Milani.
"Milani?" I gasp. I fear he may have gone too deep into this rabbit hole.
Octavia nods. "Based on recent audits, a computer in the Aether Dome has been accessing sensitive information stored on our blockchain. Blockchain transactions can confirm of Milani's credentials. After further investigation, it seems Milani himself is the one snooping through The Sky Labs' nodes. Since you have some close connections to Milani Sorsha, mayhap you have influenced him in his actions?"
I bite my lip, wondering why Milani would put himself into all this trouble. There's no doubt that Milani does not agree with what CrystalCorp is doing to Ruby, but I'm sure he can try to resolve this without throwing his career on the line. I say, "Whatever Milani is doing within the confines of The Aether Dome is of his own free will. I have my opinions, yes, but his actions are his responsibility, not mine."
Octavia raises her chin. "Yet his testimony states that he was in your workshop discussing matters of Ruby's well-being."
"Did Milani tell you that?" I inquire, my brow furrowing.
"I did," a boy's voice mutters.
I turn my head in the voice's direction.
It's Milani, looking disheveled and haggard. His white buttoned shirt, untucked and stained with sweat. His hair, a tangled mess. An energy rope tethers his shackled wrists. Two hulking figures, both with red hoods, accompany him.
I gasp. "What happened to you, Milani?"
Milani doesn't answer.
I reach for his face, but the hooded guard wards my hand.
Octavia interjects, "It is what happens when someone oversteps their boundaries. The Usurper did not appreciate Milani's digital presence on our blockchain."
"You mean Gunhild, yes?" I say, recalling her name.
"Yes, I'm aware you know of The Usurper's name. I want to know how you know. Mayhap you found this out through Milani's meddling?"
I grit my teeth. It's true I learned of Gunhild's name through a document forwarded to me from Milani. I respond, "I learned of the name through one of Ruby's dreams."
"Ah, such a device from your collection of strange inventions," Octavia mutters. "I find it odd how CrystalCorps-proper could approve such a contraption. Accuracies from a gadget like that would lead to great skepticism, especially with the near-infinite variables that may occur in a dream."
"I'm certain corporate took great consideration before approving the use of my dream recorder on Ruby. So far, they have no complaints."
Octavia scratches her chin. "Then mayhap you know Ruby's real name."
I know what it is, but I wonder how Octavia will react when I answer. What if she still assumes I got this information from Milani? Will The Eyes continue to torture him? I answer, "Her name is Mathilde, a name I also extracted from her dreams. I'm sure Milani knows this as well, but I have known this name long before Milani told me about it. Speaking of whom, why do you have Milani shackled here? Seems primal." Perhaps I should know this. After all, The Eyes of War sometimes places a value on theatrical performance along with combat performance.
Octavia turns her head but keeps her focus on me. "Despite the historical connections between The Eyes of War and CrystalCorp Cybernetics, understand that we are two different entities who see things from unique perspectives. The Eyes of War provide a layer of entertainment that some may view cult-like. I prefer the term kayfabe."
"Kayfabe? Like professional wrestling?" I shake my head.
"I will not lie," she returns her head back to facing me with a grin. "The Eyes of War adopt some of its theatrics from most combat sports, both legitimate like MMA and fictional like wrestling. Still, the result of Milani's presence would have been the same regardless of his employment. He overstepped his bounds, and now he must suffer the way how The Eyes treats all interlopers."
I glance at Milani once more. The tattered clothes. His droopy eyes. Slump shoulders. He looks tired and wasted. His face, genuine. Nothing about these screams kayfabe to me. No, it's too real. I'll admit that Milani and I don't always get along, but I never thought I would see him in the state that he is in now. It disturbs me.
The hooded hulks take Milani away and bring him to a place too difficult for me to imagine.
"So, what do you want?" I ask, my voice stern. "I'm sure there are other reasons besides showing me Milani's messed up face."
"You're right." Octavia grimaces. "This meeting is more than entertainment." The tall woman presses a holographic button, swapping the image of Milani to that of Ari Kagura. "I would like to talk about the Former Machine Vessel, or whom the world knows as Ari Kagura."
A thought clicks. Former Machine Vessel. That was on Ari's file Milani sent me last week.
"Ari... zona?" Ruby mutters, her voice low.
A small part of me wants to remove Ruby's mask just to see what would happen. It's apparent that whenever Ruby wears the Maestro's Mask, she does not see Ari the same way everyone else does. Fortunately, I took Milani's advice and built a mask with recording capabilities. Perhaps I picture what Ruby is seeing once this meeting ends.
"From my understanding," Octavia begins, "you have the capability of tracking her down. Your tactics seem to have zeroed in on her location on a specific island in the Pacific Ocean. Milani can attest to this."
"Yes," I answer. "Milani and I have a strong case to believe that she's located somewhere on Howland Island."
Octavia smiles. "Brilliant. In fact, that is where my colleagues believe, where we can find Livia. After learning of your tracking techniques, I devised a plan to track Livia through her cybernetic augmentations. I would have expected her to be in a morgue somewhere, but she seems alive and well on that same island. What she's doing there is a mystery to me." Octavia waves a hand on the hologram, swapping out Ari for her twin sister Livia, "Whenever she's not on that island, Livia's pings resolve near a CrystalCorp laboratory or campus in a random part of the world. Mayhap the organization she's working for has an interest in CrystalCorps' business practices."
"A random part of the world?" I ask. "So you're saying Livia could be in Las Vegas one day, somewhere in Paris the next day, and Tokyo the next?"
"Theoretically speaking, though, her pings seem to congregate around the ruins of Area 51 for the past 48 hours. Whoever sent her there obviously wants something of tremendous intellectual value."
Area 51, the birthplace of Ari and Ruby — Arizona and Mathilde. It used to be a top secret military facility, but now it's a place where Ruby goes whenever she has thoughts of home. I wonder if Livia is trying to gain information on the Ylfing sisters' origins. It's a long shot, but that's my best theory.
I say, "The origins of the War Vessels, yes?"
"Aye," Octavia affirms. "I'm sure you're aware of Ruby's origins and how they intertwine with Ari's past."
"This is more important than the disappearance of your twin sister, yes?"
"Yes." Octavia nods. "Gunhild sees value in both Ruby and Ari, and when Ari vanished, a cloud of worry shrouded The Solstice Sky Labs."
"Gunhild is the mother of the two children. If I was a parent, I'm sure I would be concerned about my children."
Sudden pause. Octavia opens her mouth but no words come out.
"Is there something wrong?" I ask.
"Did you say Gunhild is Ruby and Ari's mother? This is new information for me if it is true. Where did you learn of this? One of Ruby's dreams, mayhap?"
"Sometimes, Ruby refers to Gunhild as her mother in the dreams. As for Ruby's relation to Ari, I did not know that until recently, through an encrypted file Milani sent me last week."
"Interesting," Octavia says. "I asked Milani about Ari and Ruby's relationship, but he claimed to not know anything."
"That's because when he sent me the files, someone encrypted them on the reader level. If Milani can open those same files, all he would see is a black mask covering the information. I used apps I had written in my spare time to declassify them."
"I suppose that makes sense then." Octavia twitches a brow. "I wonder — what if we remove the mask off of Ruby's face in the presence of Ari? How would she react?"
"I've wondered this myself, but corporate instructs me not to remove her mask unless otherwise."
A hooded guard appears from behind. The person whispers something into Octavia's ear and then walks away.
Octavia points her index finger upward. "I'm glad we had some quality time with each other, but it seems I cannot dismiss you just yet."
"Where would I stay in the meantime?"
"My colleague will escort you to your room. Need not worry. I will notify your subordinates at the Boulder Beach Labs of your temporary stay here."
"How about Ruby? Surely someone has to take care of her."
"She'll be fine." Octavia smiles with slanted, mischievous eyes. "You will stay in the living quarters until Gunhild arrives."
"And when will that be?" My eyes squint.
"Within 48 hours. Surely you have nothing important planned, do you? Nay." Octavia lets out a sneering smirk.
Something doesn't seem right, but I play along, hoping this is one of The Eyes' theatrical kayfabe acts instead of them legitimately keeping me hostage like what they are doing with Milani.
Another hooded figure, about the same height as Octavia, escorts me to a room on the upper floor at The Hall of Warriors, a grand hall displaying statues of distinguished WarGames players. Flanking the entrance to this room are two tall statues of particular players. On the left is a silver statue of the famed Tactician, Lucia Molchalina, in her lightweight Emerald City Owlbears uniform, before she got traded to the Neon City Valkyries. On the right is a gold statue of heavy weapons expert Cleopatra "Cleo" Hassan of the Valkyries in her heavy power armor.
"This is your room," the low female-sounding voice from the hooded person says to me.
This room seems to be the opposite of what I had assumed. Instead of a dark and smelly dungeon with gray metal walls, an adequately lit apartment suite welcomes my presence. There's a room with a holographic television, currently airing an old Japanese anime. On the other wall, metal miniatures decorate the wooden bookshelves. I spot a door leading to a luxurious bedroom. The sheets, white with gold and red accents, appear clean and prepared.
The hooded figure closes the entrance with both of us inside. She places her finger at the front of her lips, motioning me to be quiet. Then she undoes her hood.
My eyes widen as I notice the woman.
This woman resembles Octavia except for two things. She still has some hair, shaved like a Marine Corps sergeant's buzz-cut, down to a thin layer of white; and her cybernetic eyes are also a scarlet red instead of pale sky blue.
"Livia?" I greet, my voice hushed.
"I see you recognize me," she says, her face still and emotionless.
"What are you doing here?" I whisper.
Livia smiles. "I'm devising a plan. My sister is a psycho and I need to bust you out. You're better off here instead back at your laboratory."
"How so? What makes this place safer than my lab?"
"Octavia and her goons are interrogating Milani. Just by looking at him, I don't trust his willpower is strong enough to resist divulging sensitive information. Considering what I know and comparing it to what Milani knows, my strongest bet is that Octavia will send her cohorts to your lab and ransack the place. They'll be after a few things, and if they can't get those things, you'll end up in Milani's place."
"Like what things?" I inquire, gasping.
"Schematics for the dream recorder and the Maestro's Mask."
"They will not find that at my labs," I say, my brows furrowing.
"I know," Livia answers. "I was just there. In fact, I'm sure you keep those schematics on your person the whole time using a data storage augment."
"What?" I say, my left brow twitching. How does Livia know this? Yes, it's true. I keep those schematics on a storage chip embedded on to my right hand. I guess she probably knows that.
"No time to explain. If they can't get a hold of your schematics, then they'll find an actual working dream recorder and attempt to disassemble it, both hardware and software."
"They'll have to break into a multi-layered lock-box, which will require considerable effort even with industrial cutting tools, or find the master key."
"I have the master key," Livia says, while pulling out the stainless steel key from an inner pocket.
"How?" A rhetorical question. I mean, Livia was one of the WarGames' best Tacticians. She's naturally good at sneaking into top secret compounds without getting caught.
"I would have gotten the box, but it's bolted to the building's structure," Livia says, her voice low. "It's also secured using biometrics."
"You're right. They would need me as well since the key has biometric sensors, allowing only me to open it. But why keep me here? Wouldn't it make more sense to hide me at some remote location?"
"I will get to that part," Livia states. "I'm sure you're aware of Ari's whereabouts, yes?"
"Yes," I say.
"Good," Livia says. "She will lead a small crew to pick you up. They will arrive before Gunhild gets here. In the meantime, make yourself comfortable. Besides, my favorite anime is on right now."
Ari? Coming to rescue me? Not going to lie, it feels weird. I should be the one rescuing her from whatever wacky stuff she's subjected to on that island.
I glance at the holographic television. It's an anime about a Chinese assassin girl who ventures through a Far Eastern kingdom ravaged by fire and ash. She loved her people, or so says the English subtitles, complementing the foreign narrator's deep, sultry, male-sounding voice. Personally, I think the books are better. Unfortunately, there are no books on the shelves, just metal figurines.
I turn my head away from the holo-tube and back at Livia, only to find her no longer near me. "Livia?" I call out.
No answer. Just like a ninja, she leaves not a trace.
Oh well. I guess I'll be binging on anime tonight. Still, I wonder what Octavia plans to do to Ruby. It can't possibly be good. I suspect Milani may have told her cultists too much.