They say algae makes noise - Part 3
Emiko's backstory
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Part 3
My tram ride is uneventful. The car is filled with people going to work or people getting off shift. No one gives me or the tusk a second glance. I hop off at my usual station and head down the concourse. Summer’s End Thrift Shop is exactly where I’d pictured it and it’s closed. It wouldn’t open again until the next cycle.
“Damn,” I say under my breath.
“Emiko 3751, I am authorized to take you by force,” says the Debt Collector as it grabs my upper arm. How did I not hear it sneaking up on me?
“Wait,” I say, but it ignores me. Instead I’m dragged into the space between two shops, unobservable from the main concourse. Is it going to take my kidney right here? Panic rises within me as I try to pull my arm out of its grasp.
Once in the alley, a door opens at the end. Maintenance corridor—access to the systems that kept the station functioning, and the domain of Long Enterprises. No doubt, somewhere within is their black market hospital.
As it pulls me through the door, I put a foot up against the door frame and twist. It’s enough to break its grip and I hit the ground running. I don’t look back, sprinting down the concourse with my backpack bouncing against my back.
I don’t see a tram waiting at the station, so I turn right towards the oxygen generation plant. The biometric access panel would let me in, and hopefully not the Debt Collector.
The oxygen generator plant is only manned during the first shift of the cycle, during the other two shifts everything inside ran on automatic. Automatic lights click on as I step inside, lighting the industrial space preceding the tanks themselves. To my right are the change rooms—I go that way and lock my backpack and the tusk into my locker.
Sitting on the bench, I lower my head into my hands and consider my options. Will the Debt Collector just wait until I leave? Will it go away and attempt to hunt me down later? Or will it call for back-up? A crash from the main entrance gave me my answer—the Debt Collector isn’t going to let a locked door get in the way of collecting its prize.
“Crap,” I let out then slap my hands over my mouth—the Debt Collector’s hearing would be better than any human.
“Emiko 3751,” it says through the change room door. “There is no point in resisting.”
I bolt through the door to the showers then out into the cavernous space holding the algae tanks. The only illumination came from the emergency lighting as I’d turned off the main overhead lights when I left earlier.
I go up the nearest staircase to the catwalk above. Before I reach the top, I hear the Debt Collector behind me. Instead of looking, I sprint to the area undergoing upgrades hoping someone left out a tool I can use as a weapon.
“Emiko 3751,” it says, standing outside the change room. “I am authorized to use force to capture you.”
Turning, I stare down on it. It turns, opens the electrical panel, and switches on the breakers including the overhead lights. 100,000 lumens flood the space, momentarily blinding me. I hear the android sprint up the stairs.
By memory, I make my way towards the platform I’d been at before. A hand grabs onto my wrist and I twist away, losing my balance and falling to the metal grating.
My shoulder takes the impact and the sharp edges of the grating dig into me, if my skin had been bare, I would be bleeding. But the Debt Collector has lost his grip of me. I roll over the edge and into the nearest algae tank.
Before resurfacing, I swim towards the other end of the tank—where work is underway. It’s awkward in my boots, but I’ve spent enough time in the water to compensate.
The sound of footfalls on the grating above would have been transmitted into the water—yet I hear nothing. I hope the Debt Collector stayed put watching the water. The suspended algae would prevent it from tracking my movement below the surface.
At the far side, I propel myself out of the water and climb up on the platform as fast as I can. Wires still hang from the ceiling forcing me to dodge around them to reach the rubberized surface of the workspace. In the corner, a toolbox sits open. I head straight for it, grateful the Mech Guild workers had been so messy. On top is a crowbar. I grab it with both hands as though it is a sword and turn to face the Debt Collector. Only then do I realize that I’m cornered.
The Debt Collector advances towards me. The repair of the damage to its face gleaming under the bright light giving its perfect male features a menacing edge. Even if I sprinted, I couldn’t make it back into the water—it would be able to catch me. I swallow and hold my ground.
With each footfall ringing against the metal catwalk, it reaches the platform I stand on. This time it doesn’t address me, instead it continues to approach at the same, patient, rate. It smoothly avoids the fallen electrical wires in its path.
As soon as the android is within range, I lunge forward and strike its left thigh with the crowbar. Luck is with me. It slips, falling sideways into the handrail. The side of its head making contact first, ripping open the previously repaired section of its face.
It slowly stands and faces me once more, its expression neutral. The internal working of the right side of its face are now exposed—creating a sharp juxtaposition to its synth skin covered features. I could see its metallic endoskeleton beneath the woven network of synthetic tendons. The view would have been fascinating if I wasn’t in such peril.
“Emiko 3751, the cost of my repairs have now been added to your debt,” it says slurring its words.
I strike it again, contacting its shoulder before stepping back onto the rubberized flooring. The Debt Collector staggers backwards in the direction of the tank. Just as its foot lands on the lip of the catwalk, it reaches out with its right hand and grabs one of the dangling wires.
A sharp crack rang out as the live wire used the android as a conduit. The Debt Collector’s mechanical body goes rigid as a glow engulfs it. It must have turned on power to the wires when it switched on the breakers. Then all the lights go out. I hear a splash before the emergency lighting comes on. The Debt Collector is gone, no doubt already on the bottom of the tank along with the other garbage that ends up there.
I take a series of deep breaths to calm down, before going over to the main circuit panel. The breakers have tripped. I reset all but power to the exposed wires and the overhead lights come back on. I go to my locker and pull on my wet suit. It’s still damp and clammy but, I need to be sure the Debt Collector is deactivated.
I find the Debt Collector on the bottom, slumped against the wall like a discarded marionette. The lights on my mask, highlight its perfect features. Its damaged face looks the same, except now tiny bubbles are escaping through the rift.
My eyes follow the path of the bubbles as they ascend towards the surface. They mingle with the tiny bubbles produced by the algae. No doubt, the bubbles will collapse together combining their tones.
I let myself float towards the surface. Taking a moment to allow the warm water and green glow engulf me. In time, someone—not me—will have to haul the Debt Collector back to the surface. My debt to Long Enterprise still stands. But now, I have the tusk which I can sell to get off the station and build a new life.