The virgin & the bad boy (Gravity)

B2/Chapter 12/The train from New-New- Delhi

I looked down on the road leading out from a southern city called New-New- Delhi. Catz in all her cute glory had been accepted but the forces of evil( aka Earth) as an intern. She wasn't saying much about Dante. Catz had to be careful,  so we could not talk much. Not being able to meet up with he made me more isolated.  As an intern Catz and had already learned there had been some new arrivals from Earth and things had changed at the top. According to her, they had arrived with new Capachino making machines which I guess mean they were in it for a long occupation. Or they didn't like Martain coffee. To be honest I couldn't blame them. It's going to sound un patriotic but Martain coffee tastes like someone accidentally dropped a skunk in a blender.

What she did tell us was the machines were up to something, the train was part of it. We had learned that a train was leaving New-New- Delhi and traveling north. The containers formed a solid column of cars over a mile long. The train was automatic and slow moving. There was a bridge over the track near the edge of the city and I was standing on the sidewalk looking down.

"Are you ready for this?" said Kentro over my earrings.

I had worked out that Kentro could be quite useful remotely. He was now so far away his first law could not kick in and prevent him trying to rescue me from danger. Instead, he knew he would have to help me, with a big emphasis on not getting me killed.

"I can see the drones," said FirefoxFive over the radio.

Near the front of the train, some security drones acted as scouts for the train. They would land as the train got up to speed. 

"Taken them out," I said

We had managed to trade some of the oak we stole for some high velocity rail guns which we used to hit drones. I could hear fire over the microphones. The rest of the parkour crew were causing a diversion in another city. The rest of this mission was just me and John.

The train approached at a terribly slow rate. It was incredibly heavy so it took hours to accelerate to up to the 200 miles an hour top speed. When it had begun it was going out walking pace. I watched the train run underneath me and noticed the top of the containers were close to the bottom of the bridge.

"If madam is ready," said Kentro.

"Yes" I said putting some electromagnetic gloves on. As long as I held my index and forefinger together enough current would run to stick the gloves to anything metal. Looked at John and he nodded back.

"OK fuckers 5..4.. 3..2..1" said Kentro.

I stopped watching the train going under the bridge beneath me. I nodded at John. Then I turned round began to run full speed across the bridge. As soon as I reached the handrail I did a forward vault and soon was in the air above the top of a red container. I briefly fell through the air, as I did I admired the way the train was slowly pulling away from me, I have managed to match speeds. I landed on my feet pushed forwards and stuck to large magnets that I was holding to get a grip onto the train.

John landed a few yards behind me.

"hey that was easy," I said over the radio in my helmet.

John and I had spent the last two days practicing jumping on to a flat bed Rover.

"I'm down," said John landing behind me.

"Headdown miss Rocksucker" said Kentro calmly.

I flattened my body against the top of the container. I knew this was coming up but it seemed rather quick. The train past underneath another bridge. Martian trains were built big with wide tracks but there wasn't much of a gap between the top of the container and the bottom of the bridge. I was in a sports EVA suit, the sort you would normally use for climbing. It was flexible and narrow just big enough of the gap. It was built to take damage but if the helmet got cracked and I lost air I would be seriously dead.

This felt weird, I could see movement, but without any atmosphere, all I could hear was my own breath and the respirator. I could not feel any wind against me. It was as if the train was stationary and the world was moving passed it like some huge theater.

"If Miss and master John would crawl their sorry assess to the rear of the train you could move while avoiding the bridges," Kentro said.

"How long have we got before new drones get here?" I asked. The last ones we had taken out with handheld rail guns..

"For a sucker like you? Minimum of 18 minutes miss" said Kentro over the radio. 

"Okay I'm getting up and running you tell me when I need to jump down" I said standing up.

"That would be highly inadvisable Miss unless she enjoys being spread over the side of the bridge like butter on toast. MOFO" said Kentro over my earrings.

I looked behind me in the direction the train was going. I could see another bridge in the distance, we were still quite close to the City so there would be more bridges. If we could figure out what was on the train we could get off while it was still traveling relatively slowly. The train had started off as a fast walking pace was now a slow jog. Eventually, it would hit about 200 MPH when jumping off, would be impossible. Weren't carrying enough oxygen for the 12 hours it would take the train to get to its destination and slow down. If we didn't get off we were likely to suffocate. I started to run down the carriages and John followed me.

"bud this feels like old-time doesn't it?" said John.

I ran along the container until I got to the end, then jumped up.

"If by old time you mean I'm petrified and hysterical with excitement you're right bud huggg" I said landing on the next container. That was easy I looked behind me John was getting up and following. The bridge in the distance was getting closer if I was quick I could make the next jump before getting down.

"Wait for me, yakwim" said John."look Scar there is something I've been wanting to ask you"

I almost laughed this was like old times "Wait for you? Catch me if you can" I said.

John continued over the radio "If it hadn't been for Felicity would you marry me?"

Felicity = Nurse from hell. The reason I had called off our wedding.

John had been one of the strongest Markor members in the game. He had definitely lost his edge post breaking his spine. He kept wanting private conversations and I had kept avoiding them. I had wondered why he had volunteered for this dumb mission. We had started as six volunteers , while we practiced in the dome at FiveDogs I had said that the two strongest would do it. John had really tried hard to do this. You wanted something and I realized what he wanted was time to talk to me alone.

Kentro came over my earrings "60 seconds until the next bridge, Rockhead."

"I can do the next one," I said rushing forwards. It would be close. "And NO I'm not sure I would have. I like you John and I was never sure, we would have eventually spit up like your parents."

I ran along the top of the train you could feel the carriages rock gently as the track shifted on the on uneven ground beneath it. There was something which felt like you were running along a giant snake slithering through the Martian dust.

"TEN" said Kentro starting to count down to bridge impact.

"Get down you're not going to make it bud" shouted John.

"I will" I promised.

"Get down you muppet. FIVE, FOUR" said Kentro.

I knew if I looked behind me would waste time so I relied on the countdown. I ran faster keeping your feet on this giant swaying monster wasn't easy. Also I was running in space boots not my usual flats. The end was coming up and I jumped.

"2..1 get down" said Kentro.

"Scarlett!..." screamed John over the radio. "Control. I think she's been hit"