I wish I could have slept for three more days, a week, two weeks, or at least a few more hours. My bladder said no to all of those options. One of these days I’m going to install a catheter so I don’t have to wake up early.

Although as I was peeing I was greeted by a sight I should be greeted with every morning. Bevisste, because she is evil, had an incoming message from Riley show up as a sun bright neon yellow flashing rectangle the size of a bus. I pissed on my feet and shower curtain before I managed to aim back at the toilet. I was about to curse at Bevisste until the message opened.

A six minute long vid of Riley in bed, sheets pushed to the floor along with her clothes, greeted me. I watched it three times.

The high spirits I felt after watching that vid were tempered by my reality; a thundering headache and the urge to vomit every time I inhaled or exhaled. I had gotten extremely and undeniably hammered from hard liquor I had bought on the way to the motel. I needed to be able to forget what I saw, however I was angry at myself for being such a pushover with Cleo so decided to punish myself. I did not take the obligatory Tern’s Alcohol Wash before falling asleep. The stuff is amazing, guaranteed to never give you a hangover and it did not immediately take away the buzz from the beer or whatever it was I was drinking, having to need at least eight hours to work.

After throwing up until only yellow came out of my mouth I decided that was enough punishment. I could learn my lesson some other way that did not involve me wanting to put my head into a blender to stop the pounding.

The two hiwas in the lobby of the motel looked at me with pity. I looked drunk and quite possibly was still drunk, at 1000 in the morning. It was not exactly my first time being drunk that early, though the two didn’t have to look at me like that. It made me angry they would judge me without knowing the specifics behind why I am like I am. Lots of people do it and it makes me angry every time.

Laetitia popped up in my mind as I punched the vending printer a few times. It was much too slow in getting me the drunk tabs. With Laetitia on my mind and a smile on my face from it, I washed the drunk tabs down with burnt tasting scalding hot coffee.

My eyes flicked to the call sign below Laetitia’s face. I waited with a smile on my face for her to answer. The smile began to slowly transform into a frown then slowly change into a scowl. She was probably fucking that gym rat dude. I fucking hate my life. I needed a drink.

"Where’s the next address?" I said maybe a little too angrily at Bevisste though she was used to my wildly varying fluctuations in moods. One of these days I would be happy and stay happy.

Instead of responding she merely put the address, distance, estimated time of arrival and a blue line on my vision. I harrumphed at her and headed back to my motel room to take a shower. Possibly let the vid Riley sent me play in the background as I took a shower.

An hour later I was a battle zone of emotions; dreading leaving the motel, depressed Laetitia didn’t answer my call, confused as to where Riley fit into everything and upset with myself for being mean to Bevisste.

"Sorry Bevisste. I didn’t mean to snap at you. These women are fucking me up. Why can’t I be happy with Riley and a friendship with Laetitia? My life would be so much simpler that way. I could then concentrate on murdering the Linden Cartel and exposing Timber for being such a prick." I really was sorry for being mean to Bevisste.

"It is okay Tom, I forgive you. I was not really upset with you. I was just giving you time to cool down. Catch told me to warn you, this next address is not going to be like the last one. Timber keeps three layers of security at this one, security Catch and I cannot override."

"I’ll have to use my good looks and razor sharp wits to get through then."

"God help us all." I sort of think she was not be facetious.

Sixty-six miles to go in a city with a cartel gunning for me to a destination the universe’s wealthiest man did not want me to enter. Well I could not very well do it on an empty stomach. I think I would have tried eating the first person that talked to me. Drinking heavily always made me hungry the next day.

Another Chinese food restaurant. It was not fair. I lived in the third most populated city in TUP. A city with the largest concentration of trillionaires in existence. A city devoid of Chinese restaurants. I had half a mind to spend the day patronizing every Chinese place I could find. I opted for eating until I was full.

I damn nearly clapped my hands with glee at seeing an android behind the counter. No offense to humans, hiwas or the like; androids were the absolute best cooks alive. This day was beginning to look up.

She wasn’t much of a talker, the lone employee and cook. That was another upside of the day. Talking to people was low on my list of priorities. So low that I was banking on some food that reminded me of home to put me in a mood to talk to whoever I had to to get into the last address.

While I was munching on orange bos and steen I got a message. I didn’t bother to see who it was from before opening it. Huge mistake on my part.

You have until the end of today to get me that story or you’re fired. - Pam

I needed a drink. This was not okay with me. Somehow I kept my composure though I wanted to flip the table over and break everything in sight. I began shoveling the food into my mouth as I read the message over and over. I was Pam’s best employee. This shit had Timber written all over it.

Another message came in as I was formulating a reply in my head. I stared at the blinking message, again not looking at the sender. I knew it said I was fired. I hate that eight eyed android.

"Fuck it." I mumbled and focused on the message.

A huge image of Lucky popped up; her tail wagging fast enough to fell small trees and her huge trademarked grin on her face. "Say hi to Tom."  Laetitia’s voice said. Lucky barked twice. "Sorry I missed your call. We’re going on a trip today. Hope you have great day!"

Suddenly the world was right and great. I completely forgot about the message from Pam. I swear I heard birds chirping and people singing in a light summer rain outside the restaurant. To say I was in love with Laetitia is to say a star is bright and a little on the warm side.

I replayed the message four times as I sat there. I assume by a trip she meant to the dog park. The nearest one was twenty miles from where we lived. I told you I live in a shitty part of town.

"Did you see that Bevisste?" I had a huge smile on my face. I felt ready to talk my way into anywhere.

"Yes I did Tom. How does she get Lucky to obey her?" Bevisste replied. 

"I wonder the same thing. That dog seems to ignore me like I’m not even talking. I’ll have to ask her about it when I get home." I clapped my hands together and rolled my shoulders. I was feeling good. "I’ll tell you what though I am more than ready to attack this day. You and Catch have any luck in getting me past the security system?"

"No. The woman that runs it is quite stubborn. Apparently being in charge of a place that Timber places in high regard creates quite the ego. You’re on your own for this one unfortunately. We will continue to try something though I am afraid we will be able to do nothing."

"Oh well." I said happily. Hell, even seeing that dog made me happy. I had no idea I would love to see a dog that much.

I tipped the cook a hefty amount as I left the restaurant. It was some damn good food. I was going to have to figure out how to have it delivered to my city. I had tried making the food at home with disastrous results. It was not even fit for Lucky. Then again I live on bachelor food and beer, so it is not all that surprising that I can’t cook.

The address Cleo had me going to was now forty five miles away. I had two options ride there on my bicycle which would take pretty much the entire day or take mass transit. A taxi was not in the equation especially with me being possibly fired. I thought of replaying the message from Laetitia again to perk up my dampening mood. With great reluctance I was forced to  not act out the decision. I would spend the day thinking of her and not what I really needed to do.

"Where’s the closest subway? I want this over with, a bus is going to take too long."

A display popped up on the left of my vision showing the end point for the subway station.

"Catch and I have been going over the biography and we found another address. This was quite hidden. It was actually encased in shifting quantum-encryption to avoid detection. Whoever designed it is quite clever. It was designed to stay hidden though when found to spew it’s contents immediately."

"I’ll bite. Where is it and why is it hidden."

"It is a locker at the closest subway stop to the final address. It has a keycode instead of using the biometric keycard. Tom?"

"Bevisste?"

"If I were a betting girl I would say Cleo had this planned for quite some time. I no longer believe the dead cat story."

I stopped at a traffic light to digest the information. Why? That was the main question, hell it was really the only word that continued to go through my head. I had never even heard of the lady before the dead cat.

"Think Tom, think." I hit myself on the side of the head. I was going to have to do that a little softer next time. "Can I talk to Catch? Feel free to join the conversation."

"Hi Tom. Nice to meet you." He sounded like a teenager. What the fuck? Bevisste was only six years younger than me. She was twice the age than what this Catch sounded like. He must have been brilliant for Bevisste to fall for him.

"Nice to meet you too. I am assuming you are intimate with the network infrastructure of Marland? Am I correct in assuming that? Bevisste knows New Hamp City inside and out so I am assuming you living in that vacant building you know this city."

"Well I can move anywhere. I do not have to stay in that building." Catch replied.

"Yeah, no shit." I said.

"You’ll have to excuse Tom, Catch, he is not the most tactful. He means he knows you can move around, he was in the Marine Corps and moved around a lot with me." Did I detect pride in her voice when she said that? I would say she was proud of either me being in the military or herself. It had been a long time since I met someone impressed by learning I was in the Marine Corps. It never really seemed to work on women.

I don’t believe Bevisste about not being tactful.

"Yeah sorry about that. Can you tell me what goes on in that address we are going to?"

"It is a distribution warehouse for Timber holoscreens." Catch answered.

"How long has it been here?" As an Interrogator I had learned of a distribution center on Marland that supplied goods and certain services to SR planets. I was immediately told to forget the information or regret not doing so. I had put it out of my mind until right now.

"For twelve years Tom. It was originally a distribution center for vehicle parts for the Timber Auto division. That lasted until five years ago when TimberAIR received the patent for holoscreens and created the shell company Timber Holo."

"Hold on." I would have raised my hand to stop Catch from talking if I didn’t have to swerve around a boat before I was run over. "Asshole! Not you Catch. Timber Holo is a shell company?"

"Oh yes. The name itself is really only there to put on holoscreens. The company is setup to run financials that TUP would frown at." Catch sounded very happy to supply the information. "When you run a vacant building no one wants to come in or rent you find yourself with a lot of time on your hands."

"This distribution center has something to do with that Bevisste. Remember when I interviewed Helix the msung back on Earth? He mentioned the distribution center on Marland, then promptly died by the six Alphas that burst into the room." I asked Bevisste. I had never seen Alphas before that day when Helix spilled on everything he knew.

Hell I didn’t know what an Alpha was before that day. The people make cyborgs seem like pretty genial folk. The elite of the elite. One of them could have destroyed a platoon of msung without breathing hard. That six were called in to silence one person who was close to death anyway showed just how much the brass in the Defense Ministry wanted that information covered up. Now I was heading to the same location those shock troops had killed a msung to cover up.

"I do not want to believe I forgot about that." Bevisste replied a little sullen.

"It was a long time ago and I am pretty sure I was monitored for years to see if I would tell anyone. Catch, have you noticed any irregular traffic coming from the place?"

"There is a constant flow of a heavily encrypted data stream from the distribution center. I have not tried to break it though. Just looking at it gives me the feeling I will be killed if I get too close to it. I think they would try to resurrect the first person who designed an AI and torture them if I did. I get such a bad feeling from the data stream. There are things of Timber’s you do not mess with. This seems to be one of them."

"This does not bode well Bevisste." I said.

"Maybe what is in that locker will help you. It must with how it seems Cleo set all this up before her cat died."

I had my doubts. It all seemed too simple.

"Do not think on them being there." I told myself and of course thought of the distribution warehouse as being the main barracks for Alphas.

One good thing of thinking on the place as being Alpha HQ was that I did not think on the Linden Cartel being on the lookout for me. I made it to the subway station without looking over my shoulder every few seconds. Missing my Luxor was making me jumpy. While I was extremely hesitant to use it in public even if I had it on me not having it on me made me feel exposed.

I was waiting on the train to appear, I was fully expecting it to be late this city was not very nice, when I brought up the message from Laetitia. I simply looked at her name for a while. Just looking at her name made me happy. As I looked at it I couldn’t stop from laughing as the face of Riley appeared in front of me. It was a much better image of her. Her black hair tied behind her and no makeup on. I thought of not answering then shrugged.

"Hello there Tom. Did you get my message from earlier?" She had a mischievous smile on her face.

"That I did. I have to admit it helped me wake up and then some. I could get used to messages like that."

"Good I’ll have to send you some more until we get some more personal time." She winked at me. "Do you remember what I said before I took you to my room?"

"I do and to be honest I can’t for the life of me figure out what you mean by that. I don’t mean to belittle what you said but what would a kleen possibly do to help me in exacting justice on this Cartel?"

"Cartel?"

I nodded. "Yes, the Linden Cartel. The same one I fought against many years ago."

"That makes it even better."

This conversation had me lost. I must have looked it too.

"In my years of living in Marland I have learned a very important thing. That is to surround myself with people who are great friends with the ability to protect me. You meet quite a few interesting characters working at a bar Tom, characters that turn into great friends. One of those characters is going to help you."

"Yes?" I asked still lost. What the hell was she talking about?

"Yes. Oh and Tom." The image of her face moved backwards until her entire nude body filled my vision. "Until next time!" She blew a kiss and ended the connection.

I had a shit eating grin on my face and quickly saved the call. Sure I had a six minute vid to watch of her being incredibly nice. Now I had a still image to look at.

I still had the grin on my face when I heard the train. It was right on time. I guess the city i isn’t that bad.

I got on the train, which was more empty than a normal early afternoon train in New Hamp City but nothing out of the ordinary. Since I’m a pig I pulled up Laetitia’s message.

"Tom Moore?" A man said from next to me.

The name went in one ear and out the other. I was lost in thought at what Riley had just showed me and thinking of Laetitia. Weird I know.

"Tom Moore." The insistence of the name cut through my thoughts.

"What the fuck do you want and how do you know my name?" I answered annoyed and closed the message.

I turned to the voice. My heart missed about a half dozen beats and suddenly I was cold and hot at the same time.

Alphas are a unique being. I did a little research after them bursting in and stopping my interview early. They are redesigned at the cellular level. Their entire chemistry is changed to make them as fearsome as God’s angels of war. They are tall, lean, standing still they give off an aura that makes them look like they are going to pounce and destroy everything they see. Their faces are unique too. Whether it is from the cellular change or something else they have black as night eyes and a slight bluish tinge that makes it look like the lighting is a bit off.

The six and a half foot tall human standing in front of me had eyes blacker than sin and a bluish tinge to his face. I was going to die. I could have been armed with a Rosetop laser and it would have been inadequate.

"We have a mutual friend." The Alpha said.

That is what hit men say before they kill you. I’ve seen holos I know how hit men work.

"We do?" I squeaked out. Let’s see you look death in the face knowing you have no way out and see how you talk.

"Riley Seve."

My mouth dropped. This was the help she was sending? Bullshit she was just a bartender. If she really was, holy shit.

"You’re a-."

"Don’t say it."

My mouth clamped shut so fast I think I cracked three teeth.

"This isn’t - I didn’t - are you going to kill me? I never talked about what Helix said."

"You just talked to Bevisste about it and the system that calls itself Catch." The Alpha said.

"How the fuck?"

"That isn’t important. I know by now you’re not going to write about it and Cleo has you going right there." He sat beside me. I moved over until I couldn’t move any more.

"Do you know why she is doing this and why she picked me?" I asked. He knew I just talked about that day. I was hoping he could help clarify my confusion on this day.

"Yes to both. She is having some family issues with her father and stepmother. It’s stupid issues. He wants more access to that house in Port Richey. She doesn’t want him there. As for why she picked you, you’ll have to ask her."  He studied me as he talked. He didn’t merely look at me. He studied me like I studied interviewees before questioning them. He was looking for some sort of in that would allow him to easily control me. It actually made me a little angry.

"I’m not going straight to the Cartel. Fuck I don’t even know where they are."

"I know you’re not. However you have to have realized the chance of you getting across town, to the distribution center and back out of the city is pretty fucking slim."

"To be honest I tried not to think of that. It’s kind of depressing especially without having my gun."

"I’ll bet."

I arched an eyebrow. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Either he was going to kill me or not. I couldn’t stop him so I saw no point in acting like a shy school girl.

"I was a regular human once. I can empathize." He said.

"Well forgive me for finding that to be an utter line of bullshit. I’m sure you were regular human at one time but being able to empathize with me about being scared shitless I won’t get through the day strikes me as a bit false."  Alphas brought up memories that were better left repressed.

He looked at me for a long time. I am positive Alphas are more unhinged than I am. I was fully expecting him to lean over and rip my head from my shoulders. They can to, I saw it first hand with a msung. They have freakish strength.

"I’m Hank." He said and extended his hand.

"Tom." I shook his hand. He didn’t break mine. I guess they have restraint with their strength.

"So what the fuck are you doing here? Don’t you have a democracy to protect?" I was a bit confused as to why exactly he was here.

"You can’t talk your way into that distribution center Tom." Hank said ignoring my question. "I don’t care what Cleo left you in that locker. Timber will not let enter that place. Your life will be lost before you made it up to the guard post."

"You’re going to help me get in there?" He nodded. "Why? If you bullshit me...Well I don’t know what I’ll do but it’ll get messy I’m sure."

He chuckled at me. "I have my reasons."

"Bevisste." I said. I had no qualms of speaking in front of him. Shit he had somehow listened in on something that until right now was supposed to be impossible; not improbable and insanely hard, impossible.

"I do not know how he listened in. As far as I know he is listening right now." I looked at him. He didn’t look interested. "I do not like this Tom. Alphas are not allowed to just run around where they want. They are too valuable for that."

I nodded. "I know." I really did and that was what was confusing me. It didn’t matter if Riley kept him around for a booty call. An Alpha would not just join me on a train for his own reasons.

"Did you listen in right there?" I asked curious.

"No. I can’t do that." Hank replied.

I wondered if he was telling the truth.

"This our stop." Hank said and got up.

I followed suit, grabbing my bicycle. This was not good but I had no other option. If I tried to run he would either let me and leave me to face the Cartel alone or he would kill me. There are other ways to kill a human than to rip their head off. So I followed him out of the subway to the row of lockers the blue line led me to.

"Are you going to take whatever she left me?" I asked not walking up to the locker.

"No. I say this with sincerity Tom. I will not harm you unless you try to publish what you see in the distribution center. As long as you don’t do that we are good." Hank said looking me in the eyes.

TUP wanted something from that place and apparently I was a tool to that end. I have never wished I had never taken this story more than I wished right now. It started out innocently enough. I thought I would be able to get Cleo in bed if I was sincere enough about her dead cat. Never did I think it would morph into something like this.

I was standing in front of the lockers so I may as well get it over with. I walked up to the locker and asked Bevisste for the key code. Thank the good Lord I did not have to remember it. It took me two full minutes to type it in.

The locker opened to reveal a keycard that looked like mine. I groaned. Like the keycard I used to have. Fuck it was going to take me a week of waiting in a long line to get another one. A thought hit me.

"Can you help me get one of these?" I held up the keycard. "I seemed to have lost mine."

"Maybe." He said laughing.

I rolled eyes. I hoped he was not joking. I had lost my keycard once and it took damn near nine hours of waiting in a chair for my number to be called. The Division of Personnel Security of TUP made people regret losing their keycard. Every office is like a miniature version of the pit of hell.

"Where to now Bevisste?" I asked.

"Why don’t you ask your friend?"

"No."

"Sorry I couldn’t resist. It is a little less than three miles."

Three miles with an Alpha. I didn’t want to be with one of them for as long as I had been. This was going to be trying to say the least.

"Three miles." I said to him. Hank merely nodded.

The three miles went uneventful. I’m not sure if it was because of Hank or because the Cartel was not in this part of the city.

I stopped walking my bike a good two hundred feet before the distribution center. It was not nearly as large though it was of an insane proportion. An easy two miles long I lost the end of it in the shimmering heat waves coming off the ground. I didn’t need an Alpha beside me to know this was not a simple place to send holoscreens out of. It was far too big even for ninety eight percent of the construction. Holoscreens rolled into nice little tubes. You could fit several hundred million in this building. Strictly as a business sense it would not make financial sense to keep that many in one location staying unsold.

"What is in there?" I asked setting my bicycle against the fence that was as impressive as the one around the child labor warehouse. I began to get angry at that and at the same time I was mildly surprised my bike didn’t turn into a dog. Maybe I was being paranoid about the fence.

"I wouldn’t do that." Hank said as I reached out to it. My arm froze inches away. "I hear it does weird shit to the body. It is supposed to know the difference between a person testing it or accidentally brushing against it, however that’s hearsay but I suppose you can test it out. Up to you."

I looked at him not entirely sure if he was telling the truth though I did not touch the fence. I did feel completely vindicated in thinking it turned you into a frog or a horse. I had heard about the fences through late night, possibly afternoon, forays into the Net. It’s hard to believe what you hear on the Net but the results were scary enough to keep from touching it to see if the fence knew I was grabbing to keep my balance or grabbing it to test it out. With Bevisste being confirmed by her infatuation as a true real intelligence I erred on the side of caution.

"I don’t believe you." He didn’t believe me saying it. I could tell from the look on his face. It was odd, even in the normal afternoon light his face seemed to have a blue tinge. It was so unobtrusive though that if I didn’t know to look for it I would have thought the shadow of the giant building was bending the light in an odd way. The scientists should really get rid of that. It seemed like an oddity the enemy was sure to spot. Then again they most likely only spotted it when staring at the face that was about to rip their head from their body. That image would stay fresh in my mind forever. Seeing a lope pull a head off a msung was not something you forgot. Ever.

"Is the keycard going to let me in?" I asked. He shrugged. Having an Alpha at your back was not as cracked up as I thought it would be.

I sighed and walked towards the guard post. It looked exactly like the last one. Four Dansun Mrk.12 Repeaters lined the top of the arch with countless other weapons hidden from sight.

I hated my curiosity.

Hank walked behind me, of course. I couldn’t have an elite soldier that ripped apart people without using more effort than ripping apart a tissue go before me. That would be too easy. I held the keycard in my hand though. I held it like a shield that would stop anything thrown at it. It was a futile gesture. The keycard would stop...I suppose it would stop a pebble thrown at me if I held it in the correct spot. The thought was less than reassuring.

I tried not to hold my breath as we walked up to a fully staffed guard stand with two hiwas and one lope. The guns they held were not instantly recognizable, I only studied weapons I carried and those with amazing destruction capability, though I was sure the weapons they held were more than enough to stop me in mid-stride.

The guard stand was large enough for all three to stand in and sit in and have room for a game of Four River Cards. Both sides were the same size although they all stayed in one side. The arch was four times my height with all four Dansun’s on a turret able to point any possible direction. The arch was thin and the turrets were placed on the bottom so aside from a twelve inch wide drone sitting on top of the arch the bullets were going to hit anything. The color of the arch and guard stand were a stained brown like false wood. I remember it all with perfect clarity.

The lone lope walked out of the guard stand. She looked bored, the two hiwas looked as if they would fall asleep any moment now. I suppose since the place was known as Timber’s the amount of people that tried to break into it I could count without lifting a finger. I noted the insanity of the situation before me, thought on the murdered kleens, squared my shoulders and walked forward. Bevisste was not an option here; talking to her was as good as asking them to shot me.

"Hold up." She said to me.

I stopped with Hank next to my side.

"Identification." She demanded looking at both of us with a bored expression.

I held up my keycard. "I’m here..." I paused. Shit, for some reason I had not gone over this part.

"We are here for the daily inspection." Hank spoke up. "Our goddamn car broke down, if you will believe that, about a mile from here. It’s fucking bullshit. We paid good bits to hire the supposedly." He held his hands up in quotes. "The best limo service in town to have it fucking break a mile from here. Have you heard of Boak Limo?"

I had never heard of it. I hoped it was a local service.

"Seriously? You hired Boak?" The lope replied.

"Unfortunately. Any chance you or one of the two in there can drop Timber’s name and have them credit me plus some for this bullshit?"

"What’s wrong with him?" The lope ignored the question and pointed at me.

Apparently I looked as apprehensive as I felt. I reached down far and found my inner liar, it was hiding with my sanity.

"I hate guns. They are senseless. Fucking stupid if you ask me. Every one of them even those little." I held my thumb and forefinger apart. "Freak me out."

"Yeah, he’s a bit of a pushover."

The lope looked at me with undisguised disgust. "I’ll have my manger make a call to Boak. It’ll probably be tomorrow but I’m sure you’ll get free rides for life." She pointed the snub-nosed rifle at me then snatched my keycard. Her expression changed. It is hard to follow a lopes expression but when you know it is not subtle. "I’m sorry about this. Would you like an escort?"

I shook my head falling into my role. It was surprisingly easy even with my paranoia telling me my impromptu cover story would be blown any second now and I would lose half of my face to the lope’s rifle.

"Again I apologize. I am just doing my job." She said handing me my keycard with shaking hands.

"Don’t worry about it. I would be worried that you just waved us through. I am glad you took your time to vouch us." I said to the lope.

"Thank you. The lobby is that way though I am sure you know the way." She replied.

I nodded not looking at Hank. I had no clue where I was going though I am sure he had structural CAD files of the place. I walked towards to the familiar frosted double doors, looking back and giving the guards a nod. They all stood with their heads together talking quietly.

"I thought you said the keycard would not get me in?" I asked Hank when we were almost to the door, far out of earshot of the guards.

"It didn’t. That lope would have danced on your dead body if I was not here." He said with a smug look. I wanted to slap it off him. I remembered just how powerful they were. I didn’t do anything.

"He is helping you." Bevisste said. "I have not seen chatter like that since we were in the Corps. I would tell you to keep an eye on him though I know it will not do any good. Sorry."

I simply blew a breath out of my mouth.

We entered through the double doors to a wide open lobby. It was quite nice, recliners, plants, holoscreens with TimberAIR vids, coffee machines, the whole works. An android sat behind the receptionist desk. She looked like a rectangle modern art sculpture. She was literally all rectangles, her head and arms and hands too. She must have interfaced with the holoscreen.

"Hello Pam and Lisy. How are you both today?" The android asked.

I gave Hank a not amused look. He didn’t flinch. I hoped he was Pam though I had a feeling he was not.

"Hello to you too!" I said looking back at her. "Any chance we can get this over with quick?" I winked at her. "I met a girl today."

"Oh my gosh! Yes, right this way! I’ll get you to the terminal in record time. Thank you for showing the guards the keycard. I know it is hassle sometimes but they are just doing their job Pam."

I was Pam. I hated Hank. I found him to be a very tall asshole. The asshole even chuckled beneath his breath.

"Just clearing my throat. Allergies are acting up." Hank said pointing at his throat.

"Oh of course. This is one of the worst times of year Lisy. I have to take two kinds of medication to keep me from sneezing myself out of my chair." What a nice receptionist. Androids did not suffer from allergies. They suffered from no human illness, though like a good greeter she acted exactly like the people in front of her.

She led us both to a small room annexed from the large lobby. It had four holoscreens and nothing else. Not even a place to sit. I would have been bullshit if I was normal inspector. I should not have been forced to stand for my inspection.

"A chair should be in here..." I trailed off awaiting her name. Fuck this, if I was supposed to be an inspector I was going to act it.

"Seenly. That’s my name. Would you like one right now?" She asked.

"No thank you though next time I come here I would think Timber would be nice enough to afford his inspectors with a place to stand. What if I had a bum leg? I would have to wait in pain while I did my business. What if I happened to be a pregnant woman? I cannot believe Timber would want a pregnant to be forced to stand for no reason." I wagged my finger at her.

"Oh my gosh. I am so so sorry for the oversight. I will have four chairs in here in case more inspectors come next time." She said looking positively distraught.

"That would be good though do not feel bad about it. The Supervisor of this complex should have seen to the chairs. I will make sure you are held in high regard. You are very polite." Hank’s coughing told me I was overdoing it.

Seenly nodded as she backed away leaving us in the room together.

"No wonder you were so good at an Interrogator." Hank said. "I was two seconds away from getting you a chair to sit on. Though I think you may have overdid it there at the end."

I shrugged and walked up to the terminal. I slapped the keycard on the waist height terminal and waited.

Cleo’s entire body, clothed in very tight clothing, appeared on all four holoscreens. Those four arms, I would never get used to them. "Hi Pam!" She winked. "I am so glad you made it. Have Bevisste record what you are about to see."

I looked at Hank. He was intent on the holoscreens. I shook my head and looked back. A scroll of qubits that looked like three dimensional gibberish to me filled all four holoscreens. It was just random shapes and colors to my human brain. I wanted to shake my head at the ridiculousness of it all though I kept my head straight ahead.

"All I can say right now is holy shit Tom. You wanted blackmail? Well if you can somehow talk Timber into not slicing you into four million tiny pieces you have enough to make us rich beyond our wildest dreams. I just...I will tell you all about it when we leave here. No point in telling you if you do not make it out of here. Keep looking at the holoscreen and stick with Hank when you leave." Bevisste said.

I wanted to leave, get a drink and stop by Riley’s one last time before I left town to Laetitia and Lucky.

I held my eyelids open with my fingers. It took twelve minutes according to the clock that is ever present in the upper right of my vision.

"You’re good. You can let go of your eyelids." Bevisste said to me.

I closed my eyes for close to a minute blinking in tiny gaps. You have no idea how much keeping your eyes open for a long period of time hurts until you are forced to hold them open. "Did you get what you wanted Hank?"

"That I did and more. I am going to have to thank Cleo personally."

"Oh I’m sure thanking her will be very formal." I deadpanned as I looked at him.

He winked at me.

"How about we leave here and go get a drink?" Hank asked. I nodded enthusiastically.

We turned to leave and watched the door open.

"I guess SOCOM still has a few bugs to iron out." Hank said.

I counted fourteen men and women, no humans, in the lobby all holding the same snub-nosed rifles in their hands. There could have been more, I stopped counting at fourteen. They were all armed and I had nothing not even a stick to throw at them. What was the point in counting every one of them?

Now I had seen six Alphas move before. It is a nightmare terror inducing sight. They move so fast that it is actually hard to keep track of them and their strength is a marvelous and terrifying sight to behold. They not only ripped the head from the msung, the six also tore it into multiple pieces. Not a single one of them used a tool of any sort. They all used their bare hands.

Hank moved exactly like the vision I will never be able to unsee. He was for lack of a better word, a whirlwind. He was standing beside me being sarcastic then he was among the large group of people in front of me. I am not entirely sure if the people had any idea he was among them.

He moved from person to person as he were the fictional grim reaper given flesh and blood.

I could not keep track of him. I have watched the vid countless times since and each time he is an apparition moving amongst the living. I could see his arm here and his upper body and head there, not once is it a whole image of him. I do not know what in SR can stand up to him and I never wish to find out.

He was an unholy demon in every literal sense of the word.

As the last of the people fell, without a single shot fired, I walked out of the room looking at only the double doors. The savagery of it all had brought back memories of fighting and killing room to room and door to door. What the politicians that send me and my brothers and sisters to war do not realize is that it takes a toll on the soul. It is not just the body and mind though it takes a mighty toll on that. The very soul is ravaged by it. Some people do not believe in a soul. It is there and it is ravaged and sometimes killed by the brutality of war.

Memories of entering into a home came back as I tried to walk to the double doors. It was a home of seven ppings. It is easy to think of a race that resembles a minotaur as an enemy when you view them from afar. It is easy to view anyone as an enemy that needs killing when viewed on images and vids. It is altogether different when you are moving from room to room murdering ppings that are supposedly evil and involved in a plot to overthrow democracy. There were seven of them, two ppings that were just beyond puberty. They had as much chance against a platoon of Special Forces as these people did against Hank.

I have never hated the military until that very moment when I watched Hank. I do not hate them now, they do as politicians force them to do.

I needed alcohol. I needed a lot of it.

I did not look back as I left the room. I heard Hank’s footsteps as much as felt him beside me. He had the good nature to not say anything. Maybe he felt what I felt. Maybe he did not. Maybe TUP turned Alpha’s truly apathetic. I was only partly there. I had thought I was fully there.

Bevisste stayed mercifully silent as we walked through the parking area. She stayed as silent as Hank while I grabbed my bike and headed towards the bar I had seen on our way over here. Hank stayed a step behind me the entire way. He did out of respect for me I am sure. I liked to hope he was feeling what I felt. I felt the world was wrong and would never right itself. It was almost as if living was futile. Images of what I had done in the name of TUP and democracy flashed in front of me.

The bartender put a bottle in front of me. I believe Hank asked him for the entire bottle. I am not sure. All I know is I began drinking. I began drinking heavily. I finished the entire bottle feeling empty inside.

"I murdered families Hank." I said turning to him. He held a bottle of beer in his hands. "I murdered msung and pping families because they were on the wrong side of The United Planets. Sure it is called casualties and fatalities to those who sent us but it is murder. I shot a ten year old pping dead simply because he was in an office that the Phatogs were supposedly using as an HQ. How many people have you murdered? That is what it is Hank. Murder."

Hank upended his bottle and slammed it on the bar hard enough to shatter it. "I don’t murder Tom. I am sent by SOCOM to subdue and restrain those who wish TUP harm. If they wish to try to kill me then I will react with the exact same level of force. It is not murder. It is war."

"Bullshit!" I roared at him. I tried to hit him. He only moved his left arm, catching me and holding me against his chest. He forced a pill into my mouth that dissolved instantly.

"Get a hold of yourself Tom and go find your woman back home. However know I will help you kill every last person involved in Linden Cartel. That is not SOCOM talking, that is me talking. That is the very least I owe Riley. Just ask for me when you are ready, until then go enjoy life with your woman."

He did something to me that made me fall to the ground with no feeling in my legs. As the alcohol vanished from my body I lay on the ground thinking of the atrocities I had committed. I had tried so very hard to hide the memories. I thought beer and liquor had buried them.

I was wrong.

My legs were not stopped for very long, however I stayed on the ground letting the memories I had kept buried for years beat me for the horrible person I was while in the Corps until the bartender came around to try to help me to my feet. I pushed him away.

"What did you record back there in that little room? I need to begin to think of am easy way to blackmail Timber," I asked Bevisste. I poured myself a small glass of the cheap whiskey and glared at myself in the mirrored wall at the back of the bar.

"To be honest Tom I do not know how he is not going to kill you no matter what you say." Bevisste replied.

"I wasn’t the only one that saw it Bevisste. I have an idea of how I’ll get money out of the bastard, I just need to know exactly what I’m extorting him for."

"I think you will enjoy this more than Cleo and Riley at the same time then." She knew me better than I know myself. "Cleo must really be angry at her father. The distribution center most definitely provides good and services to Socialist Republics. Among many things that are created at the enormous child slave labor factory and are shipped from the distribution center to the SR are; HTC.13R, fast makers, overseers, holoscreens, engines for F/A Razors, official TUP EEs, and brains for the SR Fowler class aircraft carrier. I’m sure TUP knows of a couple of those but the carrier brain and 13R? I want to believe no one knows of it."

"Well they know of it now, which means I’m in an even harder place. The vid of what Hank did had to have made it back to Timber by now which means I lose just about every bit of leverage I had."

"I thought you said you knew what to say," Bevisste said calling me out.

"I did until you told me exactly what was in that warehouse."

"I’m sorry to interject my opinion into the conversation. Bevisste said I could listen in," Catch’s high pitched voice called out.

I scowled then nodded. "Go ahead."

"Timber has a large presence in Marland, so I watch data encrypted by his companies come and go, to and from Marland all day long. The data flow from the distribution center at the time you entered it was not belonging to one of Timber’s companies and as of right now it still is not. If I didn’t know any better...No come to think of it I have to be wrong."

"Spit it out Catch. You’re not messing with my life only here. I die and Bevisste dies with me. What do you know but now think you’re wrong about?"

"Well you both are going to think I am crazy but I am one hundred percent positive that the data is being encrypted with a modulating shadow. I know, I know. I’m crazy for thinking and actually voicing it."

If Bevisste was standing in front of me we would have shared that knowing look. The modulating shadow encryption was basically a gift straight from God. Rumor is SR thought they were smarter so they passed up on the encryption. God then stopped by a TUP science office, handed the encryption over and told the good people to only use it with Alphas and highly sensitive secrets.

"You’re not crazy Catch. Alphas use that encryption when communicating with SOCOM. Wow I’m not going to say it Bevisste."

"That is lucky." Bevisste said for me. "I am beginning to think you are onto something about that dog being magical. Catch, what you saw and are still seeing is a subroutine Hank somehow installed into the distribution center security system and that terminal, making both as good as being owned and ran by TUP Defense Ministry. I do wonder why SOCOM would send Hank to do that."

I threw up my hands and backed away from the bar. "I don’t care and I don’t want to know. All I want to do is blackmail Timber, write this stupid cat story from Pam, and go home with Laetitia and Lucky."

"Come on Tom."

"No Bevisste! I fucking hate this fucking city and the fucking cat story! Let me go home so I can enjoy being a welcome mat friend for Laetitia and you can enjoy Catch!"

"Fine." She did not sound very sullen. I’m pretty sure she was happy I did not follow my curiosity.

"You’re goddamn right fine. Can you please contact Timber?"  I asked nicely. Well as nicely as I could ask Bevisste to contact someone who could just stop all flights from getting into the air while he hunted me down because I tried to blackmail him. "Positive thoughts Tom. Positive thoughts."

"Hi there, this is Xelin with TimberAIR. How may I direct your call." A high spirited kleen answered. She was most likely no older than me. I wonder if her or Timber’s wife knew he hired goons that murdered kleens.

"My name is Tom Moore. I was commissioned to write a story on Cleopatra Eviners dead cat. Cleo sent me on a hunt ending at a distribution center in Marland on Timber Avenue and 5th Boulevard, I went in there with one other person who is no longer with me. I’ll wait."

The confusion on her face let me know she was a simple receptionist, hired due to people wanting to speak to people not dumb algorithms. However those dumb algorithms would be listening in on the call and would direct it where the call needed to go.

I had to wait for all of ten seconds. I was fully expecting to be waiting a few minutes until enough SWAT units could cover the building. It was the reason I stayed in the bar. Fuck SWAT if they were gonna kill me; I was gonna make it damn inconvenient for them.

"Tom Moore. Please wait for Timber Simple." A voice not belonging to that kleen.

Simple? I mouthed. No wonder he only went by his first name. His last name wrote the jokes for political comedians.

"Tom Moore. So you’re my daughter’s new boy toy. I would have thought she would choose younger." Timber was basically designed by a cosmetic surgeon. He was beautiful and terrifying to look at. As I gazed upon him I had a sudden urge to tell him everything just so I could keep looking at him, and an urge to crawl up in a ball and wish for death to take me. I think it is the eyes that did it. They were almost pitch black, almost Hank’s level but not one hundred percent black. It’s not a natural evolutionary trait in any race.

"Hi Mr. Timber." So my plan was beginning to go off the rails before it began. Where was that dog when I needed her? I could use some of the luck she shed like her fur coat.

"It’s a shame my daughter’s idiotic cat slipped into the pool and died like it did." Timber said.

My palms were sweating so much I felt like I could fill the glass in front of me if I held them over it.

"I saw who was building the holoscreens and everything else you have in the ten mile long factory. I also saw the terminal at the distribution center." I would have liked my voice to sound as if I had broken out of puberty, though I was happy I managed to voice what I thought.

"It’s a nice factory, is it not?" Timber said as if I had said nothing.

"One other was with me at the terminal. The weird thing about him is he has such black eyes. I didn’t want to go with him but his black eyes made me a little blue in the face." How I managed to keep talking to the most influential and powerful person in existence as his expression darkened and his eyes narrowed was something I’ll never know.

"What does my daughter want this time?" Timber asked in clipped tones.

"I do not know sir, however I would like something. Bevisste?" Thank God I spoke to Bevisste so much. She and I knew each other better than we knew ourselves. She wrote the story I was going to turn in to Pam while I talked to Timber and sent that same story over my connection with him. I prayed she wrote it how I wanted her too, I was pretty sure she did, then again it was my life balanced on the tip of a knife.

"This says nothing about the two buildings." Timber stated. He leaned back and looked at me like a curiosity.

This is what is called going all in blind. You either win the mother load or you’re fucked. I wouldn’t be going home penniless if I was fucked. I wouldn’t be going home at all.

"That it does not, you are correct sir. However that odd black eyed man presented me with a very lucrative offer. I told him since it is your information it would be rude not to allow you to present me with a counter offer." I was more proud of myself at this moment than I had ever been in my entire life.

"I could kill you." He made it sound as if he claimed he could take a piss right now and no one could say anything.

It was the certainty behind the words that gave me pause. I had said those words a few times during my first interviews, acting the hard ass, even then there was a tiny doubt that even with the chance being as infinitesimal as it was there was that chance they could break free and kill me instead. There was zero doubt in Timber’s voice for he knew what he said to be as true as a star is hot.

"We both know the Alpha would stop that from happening." I stated as confidently as I could which was not at all.

"Possibly, though not knowing what you saw means his leaders will most likely let you die. So what is it that you want Tom?"

"My job back. I want to be able to keep living where I’m living. I also want a safe exit out of Marland back to New Hamp City." It is not exactly what I was expecting to list off for my demands. Though let’s see how well you do when trying to blackmail someone with more money than God, who just tells you he will kill you with less expression than saying salt is salty. It’s fucking nerve wracking.

"And not stay with that kleen, Riley?" A small smile played at his lips at my dismayed expression. "I know everything about you Tom."

"I want to keep the dog too." I blurted out. Well that is odd; he had no idea what I was referring to. He covered up the look fast enough.

"Tell you what. I’ll do you one better. I now own that apartment building you live in. My people will pay for the repairs and everything else you people need to live there. All monthly rent will go straight to your bank account and that Super you dislike so much will now know you are his boss. You send me everything you saw and you get all that and you get to leave Marland alive."

My expression must have changed when I suddenly saw three hundred thousand bits deposited into my bank. Four years’ worth of a salary in a picosecond.

"As a show of good faith." He said to my expression.

I didn’t have to tell Bevisste to send it. She was already on top of it. Timber nodded as he looked it all over. The signed key at the end verified it was original and had not been duplicated, modified or any part copied by Bevisste. It was a key only Interrogators were provided, to prove the information they had obtained during a question and answer session was not altered or saved by the Interrogator. I think it amused Timber.

"It was nice doing business with you Tom. I hope you keep writing articles. I do like your style. Good luck with Cleo." He laughed and cut the connection. It sounded genuine.

I fell onto the bar, no longer having the energy to stay upright. I had the largest smile I had ever smiled I on my face. I had actually blackmailed Timber and was still living.

Next Chapter: Call it a lucky guess