Hacking the Sun [Old Version]

Chapter 6.2 Learning the Lynx

A pizza wrapped in a tortilla like a taco. This was the symbol of the great restaurant header Tacquizza, where the taco-wrapped pizza served a dual purpose as the letter A. The shtick did not work as well for the Burger Queen across the street, that tried to make its B in 'Burger' the shape of a hamburger.

Jessica entered Tacquizza from the back corridor, as a recycle bot tossed a hamburger in the Organic canister. Entered to white smoke, the sound of sizzling and rap battling then weaved through the kitchen line, where her boss, Eva, sang Italian while wrapping tacos. It may as well have been gibberish, rhyming gibberish. She could, however, understand coworker Gus, who rapped his Spanish row and rolled pizza dough. Whether or not Gus and Eva understood each other was anyone's guess.

Eva hailed Jessica over heaps of sizzling meat. "Hey, Chetah! Primi ordini sono pronti!"

"Of course they are!" Jessica replied. "Only thing faster than my delivery is your cooking!" 

Italian laughter.

"Hey, Jess!" called Gus. 

Jessica turned to meet the big grin on Gus's tan, oily face. 

"A priest, a rabbi, an imam, and a vegan enter a bar."

"You already told me that one, Gus!" She continued toward the counter.

"Ey, it's still funny!"

Per routine, Jess extracted two carriers at a time. Always insulated packages and the occasional backpack cooler. Eva did not want to spend money on a stasis cooler, which meant no skate tricks when soda was involved

***

Navigating the suburbs was a fluid race. Jessica leaned on memory for GPS. Her goggles added x-ray vision, the lenses highlighting law enforcement by placing their red outlines against the blue of civilians. Red's proximity was all she needed to gauge whether or not she could skip roads or grind rails. The ability to see through walls definitely helped.

"Play 'Crash' by The Primitives."

Here you go

Way too fast

Don't slow down, you gonna crash

You should watch, watch your step

Don't look out, gonna break your neck

So shut, shut your mouth

'Cos I'm not listenin' anyhow

The sight of an Azarean guard brought her to a screeching halt. A member of NSS: New Sumer Security had appeared around the corner block. He was idle on his bike, outside the McDonough's restaurant. No one seemed to pay him any mind as he sat there, drinking whatever Azareans drink from his plastic bottle.

***

A sense of irony simmered in Jessica's stomach as she stepped outside the McDonough's restaurant, but there were more deliveries to make. When Eva got a call from the inner city, the boss seemed rather inspirited by someone's passionate yearning for Tacquizza. Jessica had no qualms; she was already used to New Sumer's traffic and "Mobography." The only foreseeable issue was the speed of the delivery. Again, Jessica had no qualms.

Her eyes rolled faster than her gravity board. "Three Mermaid Stars." She surveyed New Sumer's eastern district, everything in her path. Skyscrapers were city sanctuaries, housing the majority of its living population and workforce. Sky traffic in the high sprawl and everything below assumed a hive essence. "One Burrito Bar, two—three Jack N' Cups, two vehicle rental locations.