Aurablade

02

It's hard to know when day breaks through the city. Neon light pours from behind the drawn window shades all night long. Only when Talc spins his computer around, displaying a spreadsheet with a series of names and long number codes on it, do I discover the time. In the lower right corner, tiny numbers glow six fifty-eight.

"What have you got for me?" I murmur as I scroll through the database.

"The list of every person who has signed up for The CryoFuture project." Talc folds his hands together, through his fingers writhe together, refusing to stay still. "This information is only for people on level ten in the company."

"How do you know?" I ask, still scrolling through the columns.

"Because that's how much of the database I hacked through."

"And how much further can you go?"

"Digitally, level five. The most top-secret information is stored on devices within The CryoFuture's offices. All the level one stuff is in Argon's office."

"How do you know?"

For the first time, Talc's chest puffs out with pride. "You can learn a lot just by staying quiet and observing. I've overheard far more conversations than my uncle knows. Heck, I even dismantled and wiped the security tape when you came in."

I raise an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yeah."

Security cameras usually are of no concern to me. If it's dark at night, my cloak helps me to blend in with whatever my surroundings are, taking on the same color and texture of that which is nearby. I didn't consider that I would need to disable the security feature.

I regard Talc suspiciously. "Why help me?"

Talc swallows. "Y-you held a knife to my throat."

Yes, but I didn't demand that he disable any cameras. He could've left them on, hoping help would come. My nerves are on edge. This could be a trap. I could be an idiot for trusting this boy to help me.

I peer down at the list, at the names of all the people who joined The CryoFuture. It was supposed to be the latest advancement in our society, a way for individuals to freeze themselves for a period of time and then rejoin society, living in a different era than they would have ordinarily. Supposedly it was tested and successful, and batch one recruits were hired. According to the company, individual consciousnesses that are trapped in a state of suspended animation dwell in a place known as "the underworld," along with the minds of other individuals who are knocked out or in a coma.

But for two years, I endured a job that I despised and searched every inch of the wretched underworld. I never found the girl I was looking for, and now, I demand answers. My eyes blink, and the names refocus on the screen. I start to scroll as I figure out how to verify the list's legitimacy. This is too important for me to make any more mistakes.

Then my finger stops scrolling. One name captures my attention, knocking the air from my lungs.

Stellae Zaraus.

My sister.

The date she signed onto the project is beside her name, along with a unit number and some other codes I don't understand. It states her age, height, weight, physical description, education level, family members, and other personal information.

The information on the sheet is correct, but I need more convincing before I trust what Talc retrieves for me.

My hand dips to my belt. In a flash, my dagger is pressed to Talc's throat.

"Why are you helping me?" I growl.

"You're going to kill me!" Talc squeaks.

"There's something you're not telling me," I say. "What is it?"

Talc's throat bobs against my blade. "I... I lost my aunt."

"Speak up!"

A sob escapes Talc. "My aunt disappeared six months ago. I used to stay with her in this apartment whenever my uncle was away. Then she just... vanished. My uncle said she's away visiting another cyber city, but as the months dragged by without any word from her..."

Talc inhales a shaky breath. "The reason why I was so confident that I could get you the information you need is twofold. I've hacked into higher levels before, accessed this very spreadsheet before when I was looking for my aunt."

"Did you find her?"

He shakes his head. "I'm convinced that her disappearance is related to The CryoFuture, though. She'd never just leave for an extended period of time without saying something to me first." More quietly, he adds, "She was like a mom to me."

Something tugs deep inside me, in the soft part of my heart that's been buried underneath layers of late night killings. It's one of the few parts of me that remains from years prior, when I was Sol, the loving sister of Stellae.

When I wasn't Aurablade.

What I recognize in Talc is the same deep mourning that pushed me to break into Argon's apartment to threaten him for information. We both are desperate for answers, to once again see the people who matter most to us in the world.

The question is whether Talc is willing to go to the same lengths as me for answers.

What lengths am I willing to go to for answers?

I give the slightest shake of my head. Now is not the time for self-reflection. My attention turns to the time, seven o'five, glowing on the screen.

"When do you have to be at work?" I ask.

"Eight o'clock. But no one will notice if I dip out for an hour here and there."

"You can hack a few levels higher today?"

"For sure."

"Okay. We'll reconvene tonight. I probably shouldn't be seen here at the apartment building again, so we'll meet under the Skybridge three blocks up from here."

Talc nods. "What'll you be doing in the meantime?"

I take out my digipod and quickly scan the spreadsheet. "Looking into some of the people on the list here." I pause. "What's the name of your aunt?"

"Raena Holos."

"I'll see if I can find anything on her."

The slightest trickle of natural yellow light trickles into the apartment, shining on Talc's large, brightening eyes. "Really?"

"No promises, but there are a few places I can look."

After all, the first place one should always look after someone disappears is for a bounty among the Elyminai.