Dadr'Ba (22 page)

Throughout his bio-mods and mentoring P’Ko didn’t have his TaC-B and hadn’t accessed electronic messaging, having left a non-availability notice (traditional during mentoring sessions). Once he got back online and checked his voice and text messages, labeled high importance among dozens of teases and congrats from his friends was his report to work notice from the CA.

P’Ko is to report to his new work site tomorrow; he found the package mentioned in the message, with his new work uniforms and two eSuits set to the side just inside his room by his parents. He immediately sent Su’Zi a coded message to meet, tonight.

Chn’Gi spent several weeks contriving the cover for her access to the reader and data.

She began an exercise program, nothing in-depth, being clones without the power of natural regeneration and muscle building, the best a GLC (Gene-Locked-Clone) could hope for is to keep their systems working optimally and avoid atrophication.

A modicum of exercise several times a week is enough for most people who weren’t practicing for a sport where improved kinesthetic sense or developing muscle memory is the goal. There are a few compulsive individuals that find exercise addicting, but Chn’Gi wasn’t one of those.

Chn’Gi didn’t feel much different after each workout; maybe she wasn’t doing it right. But that wasn’t the point; it was going home after working out and soaking in the bathtub behind a locked door that she longed for.

The bathroom was one spot in her house; that wasn’t under CASS surveillance, (all people in critical positions are under home surveillance). Although the sound sensors in the adjacent rooms might be able to pick up something she always turns on music in the outer room loud enough to hear from the tub.

Chn’Gi was careful always to use the small reading light that Lu’Gs insisted on her taking and had stressed that she use it whenever she read. She keeps the light close by and always read out of view of the surveillance cameras.

The light fit rather comfortably in the palm of her hand when on it seemed to shimmer while looking directly at it, yet produced a soft light that was not unpleasant to read by.

Lu’Gs never explained in detail, but hinted that the “Reading Light” would somehow disable or interfere with the functions of some undescribed “other” forms of surveillance, but had to be used privately so that those surveilling didn’t find out she was using it.

If discovered or questioned about the light her response should be something like she “just likes it”, and the less she knows about its operation and function the better, she wouldn’t have to hide or conceal what she didn’t know.

Su’Zi walked into the Hn’Gri Bo’R, knowing that P’Ko would be there, she got the previously agreed to A-OK coded message to meet him that she’d been anticipating and tried to set a new speed record getting to sector three’s Ol’Tn.

They decided to take turns visiting each other until they could arrange to get on the same crew. Su’Zi had hoped that they could get on the same crew someday. But privately hoped that P’Ko wouldn’t get assigned to her crew. It would be awkward for P’Ko to show up on her crew. And after P’Ko’s description of his interview, she realized that it was her Su’Pr that was super critical of P’Ko.

Her crew was also especially distrustful of the CA, D’En’s and For’Nr
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‘s in general and in spite of P’Ko’s friendship with Su’Zi or perhaps because of it, they would undoubtedly give P’Ko a hard time.

As soon as P’Ko gets assigned to a crew Su’Zi’s plan will be to start working a job swap from her end. P’Ko wouldn’t be able to swap jobs until he completed his apprenticeship and that would take, if they were lucky five or ten years. Many apprenticeships last as long as twenty-five years, it all depends on P’Ko and his trainer.

There was a one in five chance he would be assigned to her crew, but she knew already, he wasn’t coming to her crew; Mi’Nr’s are a close-knit community, and she used some of her contacts to learn which crew he was going to be assigned to. Mostly the Mi’Nr grads get assigned to the home sectors they grew up in, but since P’Ko was a U’Te/Mi’Nr transfer, it’s uncertain what sector he would go.

She walked in and scanned the crowd, expecting P’Ko to play with her and try to hide. She scanned more with her psyche rather than with her eyes and spotted him right away. When she laid eyes on him she was surprised, he looked so much different, he barely fit into the used pair of his Ba’s mechanic coveralls. And he had muscle’s, muscle’s that showed through the coveralls in his shoulders, arms, and legs, and he had an unruly mop of hair on top of his head instead of the mechanic’s cap that used to cover his pre-grad baldness.

She couldn’t help but stare, P’Ko looked good, exquisitely good. And though Su’Zi tried to restrain it, and P’Ko was still a relative novice with his psychic abilities, Su’Zi could tell P’Ko sensed her awe and basked in it. This, the first time since his bio-mods and mentoring. P’Ko’s pride was overflowing, more so because this was their first meeting with the new, “P’Ko”.

Su’Zi walked over to him and sat next to him at the bar. She held back the urge to wrap her arms around him and give him one of her best hugs. He smiled and said that he knew he couldn’t hide and stood and did an amazingly dexterous pirouette, which didn’t go unnoticed by the regulars who felt the Hn’Gri Bo’R was their second home.

P’Ko got an applause from all around, but unlike the old P’Ko, rather than shrink away P’Ko bowed in acknowledgment around the room and said: “Thank you, thank you.” Su’Zi rewarded him with a big hug not holding back one iota and felt P’Ko’s firm muscles beneath her own, as she squeezed him he responded in kind and Su’Zi found herself losing her breath and melting under his clutch.

They moved to the bar shoulder to shoulder. Su’Zi found herself strangely out of breath, fighting to recover, and trembling slightly hoping that P’Ko wouldn’t notice. P’Ko didn’t seem to notice and ordered two PCF’s (Prompt Cold Fusions), powerful shots of liquor known for its instant effects. P’Ko sensed her surprise and seeing the surprised expression on Su’Zi’s face, P’Ko smiled, explaining that it was a special occasion, and it was the first time that he would taste a PCF, and he hoped that it would be the first time for Su’Zi too.

Su’Zi shared that it was going to be her first taste of a PCF, (PCF is the most expensive drink the Hn’Gri Bo’R has to offer). Not that there weren’t enough special occasions or reasons to imbibe in Su’Zi’s life, but she could never bring herself to spend ten times the price of a cup of tea on a shot glass of liqueur. This was special, and she could tell that P’Ko was jubilant and wanted to impress her and wanted to have a special toast of something that she hadn’t had before. P’Ko was going all out to make sure that he was providing her an experience she’d never had before, and she loved him for it, and couldn’t help but show and act accordingly.

P’Ko acknowledged that it was going to make a dent in the gift credits he got from his family and friends for graduation, but it would be worth it. Sharing this first post-bio-mod, post-mentor meeting with Su’Zi and make it a special memory that they could reflect on the rest of their lives.

Su’Zi’s response was that it would be special PCF or not. But, she added that she always wondered what a PCF tasted like. She thanked P’Ko and promised him that when he came to visit her in her camp that it would be her turn to impress, and she’d introduce P’Ko to Mi’Nr’s HB (home brew). That Mi’Nr’s, usually the mechanics, make a special drink from a contraption of broken and spare parts, using non-fuel grade substances found in the scree left from the mining operation. The drink is cooked and distilled then filtered through a barrel of the latest ore; it’s then bottled and allowed to age. Each sector’s HB is different, and each batch is different, and there is an annual contest between the sectors to determine which sectors HB is best. Su’Zi’s added with pride that her sector has won the last few years in a row.

The bartender, a crippled Mi’Nr, who got seriously injured on the job and instead getting bio-mod repairs with the credits the CA gave for his repair. Took the bio-mod repair credits, paid off some officials and bought himself a share in the bar.

The barkeep has since been using the proceeds from the bar to slowly pay for his repairs. He had been listening down the bar while he was preparing the drinks and hobbled back with two shot glasses with a neon green glowing concoction that had sparkles of bright gold, with some frost around the rim.

He presented them the drinks saying that “no disrespect intended, T’Bm HB is very powerful, but my PCF is light years better than that rock gut they make in the T’Bm’s.” “T’Bm HB is a single stage rocket, and it might take several to get you to escape velocity. My custom made PCF is a full three stage rocket, guaranteed to get you to escape velocity in one shot.”

A booth had opened up and upon the bartender’s suggestion, they moved to it, and sat side by side and made a toast. “To New Beginnings” and took a sip of the powerful liquor, the liquid stung and burned causing them both to gasp and cough while trying not to laugh, but after a brief pause. They found themselves smacking their lips, enjoying the aftertaste as warm fire etched itself down their throats and smoldered into their stomachs. Then, gaining courage, they took another sip that turned into a downing of the shot, this time without coughing.

The fire started in their stomachs then slowly spread to their limbs making their skin tingle along the way. As soon as it reached their fingertips, they began to feel heavy, like they were descending to the lower levels. In spite of being Mi’Nr’s and able to function in heavy gravity, they couldn’t lift up their arms or move their legs, and they sat slumped in the booth. Their heads sank to their chest, making it difficult to talk. They spent a couple of minutes of rolling their heads to the side so that they could see each other, slurring their words laughing and joking. Then they began to feel weightless and giddy, though they didn’t actually float they felt like they were floating. All the while still seated on the bench, but the feeling caused them to grab the corners of the table unconsciously.

The PCF lived up to the bartender’s claims, and its reputation. The weightlessness soon wore off, allowing them to focus on the pleasant aftertaste, feeling relaxed and good with just a hint of lightheadedness.

P’Ko who just wanted to mark the occasion with something special and to toast, to christen, to mark his new status towards adulthood, and full crewmember status, felt like he achieved his goal and that cost of the liquor was well invested.

The magical draught had erased all anxiety laying hidden regarding who mentored who and humorous stories and experiences started to be shared about learning to use bio-mods. The bartender, overhearing the subject matter, turned up the music playing in the background, wondering what the likelihood would be that Su’Zi and P’Ko would remember their conversation tomorrow.

Su’Zi and P’Ko had opened a new area of their relationship and discussed it openly and friendly, they found themselves discussing their favorite sexual techniques and positions and though it aroused them, they understood without explaining, that this night would not be the night to put their discussion into practice.

Without being said, the night or day, whenever it would happen, it would be exceptional and exclusive in such a way as not to be influenced by intoxicating liquor, but the intoxication would be of an entirely different sort.

The subject finally got around to P’Ko’s work orders; he is being sent to sector three. P’Ko told Su’Zi about the message and the package containing the new utility uniforms and eSuit, with instructions to wear them when he reports tomorrow. He is to report to the maintenance supervisor, T’Bm Sector Three, a supply shuttle is going to take supplies down from Nu’Tn the next morning, and P’Ko is to be on it.

Su’Zi was happy and excited, she could get to the sector three mining camp from the sector two mining camp easily, she knows exactly where the airlock is, and their shifts are little enough different to make visits easy.

The effects of the PCF was either wearing off or the less playful subject of work rather than recreational sex altered the tone of the evening. It was beginning to get late, and they both had to work the next day Su’Zi even earlier than P’Ko. But P’Ko is going to have a full day of seeing and experiencing new things and meeting new people; he’d need to be in top form, to make a good impression and be prepared to deal with people who will try to test him.

Su’Zi and P’Ko, sensing what each other was thinking, became sober. It might have been the effects of the PCF. Or a bit of overinflated ego from what must feel to P’Ko like Superman bio-mods. Or perhaps feeling rich from having spent the last ten days carousing with a millionaire D’En in her apartment. Su’Zi saw that P’Ko intended to strut into the mining camp like a celebrity, thinking everyone would be impressed.

Su’Zi found herself reacting hostilely towards P’Ko, she took a deep breath, calmed herself and said firmly. “Sit back and take a deep breath, you’ve got it all wrong. You need to know a few things about Mi’Nr’s; I’d hoped to be able to tell you this over time and let it sink in slowly, that there’d be at least a few days before you report, but there’s no time. You got home this morning, and you report to work tomorrow.”

Su’Zi sent P’Ko mental reassurances so as not to belittle him. Then said “you’re going to get there, and you’re not going to be welcome or trusted. Sure they’ll be “nice” but they’re going to think you’re a CASS spy. And may attempt to prove, you can’t do the job or alienate you into quitting. You’re going to have to use your personality, your wit, your intelligence and every ounce of psychic ability you have to win yourself over.” “Mi’Nr’s are not evil people, just cautious and guarded because of all the many hurts, snubs, persecutions, harassments, injustices and oppressions they’ve received and continue to receive from For’Nr’s. They are going to see you as a For’Nr. Just about the only thing you’ve got going for you is your limited psychic ability and that you’re an apprentice, free labor.”

Su’Zi, now psychically, “you must be genuine, be yourself, don’t put on airs, be humble, go into this thinking that you’re starting off at the very bottom and that you know nothing. From their point of view, you don’t. Pay attention to detail, once they’ve decided you’re not a spy, they’ll test you, at first, they might expect you to know what every Mi’Nr child should know and might act like you’re stupid for not knowing. They’ll tell you something once in passing and expect you to remember it later; you must bear this in mind, or they’ll think you’re stupid.”

Then speaking once again, softly “You’re going into a new environment; it’s going to be like you’re on another planet down there. Whoever set this up probably doesn’t want you to succeed, it would work to the CA’s advantage for you to fail, and then they would have justification not to allow cross class job selections.”

“Even with your bio-mods, it will take you time to get used to the lower levels of zone three, go slow, if you fall and have to crawl it would look really bad.” Then, with a sudden realization, like Su’Zi, almost forgot something, said: “don’t wear any of the uniforms or eSuits the CA gave you, wear what you’ve got on now and be late for your ride.” “It’s getting late, there’re some things I need to take care of before the morning, we gotta go.”

They got up from the booth, after paying the barkeep, who gave them a hefty discount, they walked out to the street, the effects of the PCF was gone, it was much later than they thought and Su’Zi had a hazardous drive ahead of her, and she’d be at work in a few hours. Before that, she needed to talk to some people and make some arrangements before the start of her shift.

Su’Zi gave P’Ko a quick, passionate hug and an unexpected kiss and dashed off down the street.