Inverted

3. Ada

A/N: This will likely become chapter 1 and the next chapter 2 then Freya will be chapter 3 (thanks for taking this journey with me. The story and world are beginning to emerge!)

Adelaide "Ada" Porter is Bohemian.

The town she hopes will soon be a distant memory looms over her as she reaches what used to be a vibrant downtown — the midpoint of her pre-morning run. It's the moment before dawn when the world is dark, but the sun is threatening to emerge by casting an eerie pinkish purple haze across the sky.

There is an NutriPod in the crumbling brick of the old city hall, and it hasn't failed to produce once since Ada turned fifteen three years ago and started running this route. With one eyebrow slightly raised she moves her palm towards the machine. "Don't fail me today, Nutri. This is our last encounter. I leave for my placement today, and I'm not sure where I'm going, but I know it won't be here." The palm reader of the NutriPod glows blue, and a familiar voice fills Ada's ears.

"Great work, Ada. You have already completed half of your suggested exercise for today. Your electrolytes are slightly low and you need protein. Your energy has been adjusted accordingly." The cube dissolves in her mouth as she picks up the glass of cold potassium-enriched water. The river of cold liquid travels down her chest into her stomach forcing her body into a quick shiver.

"Thanks, Assem. I hav-"

Her unnecessary response to the android in her ear is cut short by the cry of another building giving up on this town and collapsing under its own weight. Dust travels down the abandoned city blocks like an octopus searching for prey, but Ada is ready. She has spent months exploring the footprint of her old town so without thinking she takes her Breather from her pocket. With the push of a button the disc transforms into a mouth piece with two columns extending upward holding a platform that fits perfectly inside her nose.

The community center. A fitting end to my time here.

Finishing her run as the sun peaks over the horizon she settles on the rooftop of her building looking out over Cat's Bridge. The sun is a bright orange mountain growing from the dark sea, and the light reveals the pain, the suffering this town has faced. The dust is still settling in the south part of town, and the remaining buildings act as a constant reminder that Cat's Bridge is nothing more than a shell of what it once was. The crumbling brick is the hope of those left behind while the series of unfinished glass houses act as a twisted mnemonic of a town forgotten. Forgotten by the Republic. Forgotten by the people.

The sun's reflection draws Ada's attention to the memorial built for those lost in the Quakes of '34. It is spectacular in the morning. The sunlight is captured and focused on a beautiful wood framed mirror, a beautiful display of old world technology. Ada watches as the light dances from mirror to mirror in a criss cross pattern until the sun is illuminating the marble statue of the victims. Her father is always in the spotlight for a brief moment as the mountain of light becomes a sphere.

To the west Ada can see Trace Cove, but it might as well be hundreds of miles away. It is the opposite of Cat's Bridge — a model Bohemian city for the American Republic. The marble buildings tower over glass homes set to privacy at this early hour. The homes, with their midnight glass, look like black boxes hiding in the night, but as the sun penetrates the town the glass switches to daytime mode exposing the secrets from within the homes. Ada is too far away to see them.

"Hun, the transport will be here in two hours."

The sudden break of silence causes Ada's shoulders to tense and her eyes widen for a split second. "Thanks, Mom. I'll be down in a bit." Her eyes stay trained on the open boxes in the distance.