Sierra

Chapter 1

Rain slid down the sides of skytowers that stretched into the clouds and dripped from the edges of pedestrians' umbrellas. It saturated the broken asphalt of the street and reflected the neon lights of the shops lining the road, filling the potholes with pools of blue and pink. The pools broke with the footsteps of a young woman as she weaved down the street and dodged the mopeds that reluctantly shared the asphalt.

The whistling shriek of an aircart made her tense as it sped through the empty space above the street. Sierra glanced up as the cart snaked through the powerlines that stretched like spiders' webs from building to building. For a moment, its shriek had almost sounded like a siren.

The blast of air from its engines knocked back the hood of her raincoat, momentarily revealing her face. The woman yanked the hood back up and her dark eyes glanced around the street. But in the ever-surveilled city of Anima, everyone walked with their heads down, avoiding the watchful gaze of the cameras that littered every corner.

Sierra turned down a side street and stopped under an awning covering a doorway. Shielded momentarily from the rain, her hand slid into her coat, touching the bag that was tucked tightly to her side to assure herself that it was still with her and safe and dry. She threw another glance to the crowded streets before ducking into the side street and disappearing into it.

The cover over the subway station shut out the rain as she hurried down the stairs. She kept up with the people around her, as not to stand out, but moved fast enough to cut through the stream of people heading in and out of the station. It was almost lucky it was raining, as it gave her an excuse to keep her hood up, shielding her face from the security cameras peppering the walls and peering with their wide eyes into the crowd.

The gate beeped as she slid her subway card over the sensor and opened to welcome her to the platform. Humidity and heat hit her as she stepped into the crowd. It was the end of the work day and the platform was packed with employees returning home. The rain had brought a slight chill with it, but nothing drove away the constant humidity of Anima. Sierra worked her way to the front, careful to use her slight form to slide between people and not to push and be noticed. A few elbows jostled against her and she gripped the package below her coat, paranoid she would lose it or someone would feel it.

It was harder to travel during rush hour, but the crowds were more helpful than they were hindering. The cameras couldn't keep their eyes on everyone in the crowd. Too many people to watch, too many people to track. The crowd was a wave of hoods, people carrying their nightly shopping, businessmen with their briefcases; one more woman in a raincoat wouldn't be noticed among a hundred others.

She did her best to keep breathing steadily as she waited for the train to come and not to keep glancing down the gaping tunnel. She knew it only felt like it was late. Train automation had removed any delays from the system 50 years ago.

Another minute passed and, unable to maintain her impatience, her hand dug into her messenger bag and pulled her com device from the bottom. She clicked it on - 6:14, the train wasn't due for another minute. She sighed and stuck it back in the bag. Irritation pricked at her skin from being stuck in one place for so long.

Something shifted in the corner of her eye and she glanced over, only to feel her stomach drop. Past the edge of the crowd, was the black, helmeted figure of a policebot.

Sierra felt the blood drain from her face and her hands went clammy. Had it seen her bag? The package inside? The blank helmet stared into the crowd, revealing nothing. The crowd was reflected back and she could see herself in its reflection. It felt as if it only stared at her.

It turned away and she let out the breath that had caught in her lungs. Blood rushed back to her ears and she felt her heart rate increasing. It could see that. She knew that it would be able to see her heart rate increasing. Night vision, infrared and heat vision were just a few of the advantages it had built into its computer of a brain. She had to pick the one station patrolled by a policebot.

She breathed in again and slowly let it out while trying to reassure herself. Everyone got nervous around android cops, even if they had done nothing wrong. The blank smooth reflective helmet and fully bulletproof armor--and the fact that you knew it could decide to shoot you without a second thought or repercussions--made everyone nervous. It wouldn't notice her.

Despite her reassurances, Sierra slid to the side, easing into a gap between two tall men beside her so that its view to her would be blocked. Their overcoats closed the gap behind her, shielding her from view. At the same time as her movement, or perhaps because of it, the android moved into the crowd.

Sierra suppressed a curse and slid further to the edge of the crowd waiting on the platform. Her glance shifted down the tunnel again. The distant roar of the train could be heard approaching. She just had to make it until the train got here, and she could disappear with the crowd. If the android was assigned to patrol the station, it wouldn't get on to scan her. It couldn't stop the train to get her off, either. All she had to do was keep it from scanning her face. Her shift through the crowd ended at the end of the platform. A gated doorway blocked stairs that exited the platform to a service track that paralleled the track.

Behind her, the crowded shifted, murmurs breaking through, and she glanced over her shoulder. The policebot was weaving through the crowd, and the crowd was beginning to notice. Its flat, reflective face landed on her. A few people shifted, moving away from it to clear its path. Confusion and relief showed on the faces of the people around it, evidently glad it was moving past them.

Sierra looked back down the track to the approaching train. Its single headlight illuminated the dim tunnel ahead of it, glancing off dark bricks. She could tell it wouldn't make it to her in time. Her eyes moved down to the tracks below her. The toes of her boots touched the edge of the platform, the worn yellow warning line beneath her heels.

Her hand gripped the bag at her side, feeling the edge of the package inside. She knew there was a space under the platform, just big enough for a small human to squeeze against. She had used it before while transporting, but never in an occupied station. Not with a train coming. Not with a cop coming. Her eyes glanced to the service track again. It stretched into the tunnel and disappeared around the curve in the distance. The undercity tunnels. She could escape there. Maybe. But they weren't as friendly as the city streets. She knew runners had disappeared there and the company had warned against using them. The roar of the train increased, filling the station. The person beside her beside her stepped back, muttering a quiet "Excuse me".

She felt the touch of the andriod's fingers on her shoulder.

She jumped.