Port Casper

Chapter Thirty-Four

A series of color patterns swirled around the PodPooch's body. The controls to the lift came back online.

"Mind if I call it magic?" Grace asked.

"I have several cloned ptenda codes. Sensitive personnel deep inside ITB," Tim said. "Keep your enemies closer, you know."

A lift door opened. Grace stopped covering the street entrance. No one had seemed willing to cross the sand of the shattered doorway.

"Any idea where Raj is?" Grace said as they entered the lift.

Another color display from Tim. "Somebody just tried to enter the sky bridge on nine," he said. "I'm not picking up the send from Raj's grafty, though."

Grace knew the building had an extensive stair network in case of evacuation. She decided on the tenth floor, to get a better look.

• • •

The lift opened and Raj sprang. Nobody was in the hallway. Two quick right turns took him to the sky bridge, an interconnecting walkway linking ITB with Wyoming Compstate Bancorp. He could make it back to the street and disappear into Bod Town, just like he had with Grace. It will work, he told himself. It will work.

He slammed face first into the glass door, feeling his nose crunch as he bounced off and landed on the floor.

It was supposed to slide open. And then, belatedly, Ouch. Raj raised his head. Blood streamed from his nose, bright red on the blue carpet. His forehead throbbed. Up, he told himself. They're chasing me.

Raj blindly reached for purchase to stand, and toppled into a nearby handcart.

• • •

Maud exited the lift, Randgarten close behind. She glanced at her ptenda. An internal security sweep confirmed Chanho was on this level. They proceeded down the hallway toward the sky bridge. She drew her weapon, and Martin echoed her. She hoped he remembered how to aim this time.

A gurgling, moaning sound came from ahead. Chanho sat propped against the wall, blood covering his face. So easy, she thought.

"We've got to call medical," Randgarten said, kneeling next to Chanho.

Maud shook her head. "Step aside, Randgarten."

Maud squatted in front of Chanho, grabbing him by the collar. She didn't care that she was in a hallway. She didn't care that Randgarten was here, or even if he called compstate. He could be paid off. Hell, even compstate could be paid off. What mattered was that she finally had the bastard who had leaked Hopper and led her on a wild chase after the liquid computer. It should have been hers already. And now that he was in pain, she was certain she would finally get it.

"Ready to talk, Chanho?" She smiled at him. "I loved the sample you left in my office. Now I want the rest."

He grimaced and shook his head.

"I know it's more than a liquid computer. We saw the neural activity."

He looked away. She slapped him hard across the face. Chanho howled in pain.

"Pay attention. I want to meet your artificial man."

"AIs should be available to everybody," Chanho whimpered.

"We'd better get him some help," Randgarten interrupted. But Maud saw that he had holstered his phasewave. She ignored him.

"No, Chanho," she said, turning back to her prey, "AIs shouldn't be for everybody. Mechflesh is freakish enough. Can you imagine a world of AIs? Not on Earth!"