Hacking the Sun [Old Version]

Chapter 24.1 Neon Boughs

In the heart of the city, where technology and civility blossomed neon boughs of humanity, Jessica set her feet on the clean sidewalk and nearly stumbled. A realm familiar yet alien, a realm of light, expanded before her very eyes. Illuminated billboards, lies, and transparent girlfriends were all the rage, the trends nowhere more saturated than in the city. So, it was no wonder anyone could move mountains in the dark. Distractions took the form of labor, entertainment, and the next topic. Bliss was the incontestable substitute for freedom. She never realized the amount of intake the city incurred, until after one night in the woods. The outpour of information now felt like a bombardment, and she wondered if it was exclusive to the way her memory worked or if it was common to everyday people. Elsewhere, in the forest and the canyons, her mind had found reprieve.

Under the cover of a black hoodie, she deftly navigated the urban heart of advertisements. Sights and sounds of ghostly faces interspersed through city traffic, and hundreds of vehicles skimmed by at their spectral pace. In the middle of urban splendor, she realized that humans needed voices in their heads to remind themselves of themselves.

You can do this, Jess.

"You can do this."

You forge algorithms and analyze quantum dynamics in your sleep. You're the master at Legion Leagues, and you've already caught 'em all. You can do this.

She peered backward, to lay eyes on the dark tower. The sight of Goliath HQ made her rethink the time required to uncover its secrets. How might someone scale such a fortress? Beelz and Amon had their due intel and had embarked on their mission at her request. If Sub Terra could overcome Asgard, she could accomplish one little task.

Down the avenues of nightly New Sumer, toward Aurora Bar & Lounge,  she memorized every camera. Of all the places Azareans spent their leisure, it was one of two humans attended. 

One by the Slush-O, one by the Milquetoast Bar, two by the Step-Up Dance House, and another flanking the Halo Café. 

Surveillance didn't catch her face until the very end when she stared directly into a sidewalk camera. Despite possibility, she the city had to sleep. A woman in a poncho tripped across her path.

"There is no light without blackness and despair!" The crazy woman shouted sweet nothings from the sidewalk and walked with the gait of a nutcracker, gyrating her arms randomly. All Jessica could do was snicker and admire the performance. "We must accept that real knowledge, people, real knowledge is the extent of your own ignorance!"

Jessica strolled past the ragged woman and through the sliding wood, into Aurora.  Inside, warm colors and flowery fragrances smothered her senses,  the interior noise level only slightly higher than expected. The scent complimented the humble light over hardwood surfaces, reducing all stress from the eyes. Customary of the most luxurious joints, the wood was smooth and authentic. Only the patrons diluted the atmosphere.

On her way to the bar, she pinpointed a group of comrading men at one of the spotless roundtables. She could gauge how much they drank by how loosely their fingers fell over the glasses. The wood would be damp before long.

She found an open stool at the pristine counter of black lacquer, the front seat to an illuminated rainbow of a rack. A drink for every existing color, if not more. Thin vapor surfaced out of the slivers between labels, exuding a chill that had no effect on the Azarean bartender.

"ID, please," he said. 

Of course, she was being carded. Jessica lowered her hood and, without protest, presented the e-card. The Azarean took it between his bony fingers and slipped it into the handheld scanner, which returned a red light and blank beeps.