The Stormbike’s matte black surface barely showed a reflection in what little light reached it from the main thoroughfare. The moment Ava straddled the machine, she knew something was different. Viktor had stripped away non-essentials to make room for the transformer modification. She realized with a sharp intake of breath as she sat, that included removing vibration dampeners.
Sarah rushed to the balcony overlooking the city. Its autoways and buildings were unusually alive. She already missed seeing the soul of a vibrant city after the events of the past two days. She tossed the key over the balcony, whispering to Ava, “Catch.” She had complete confidence in Ava’s ability to retrieve it. However, she was concerned about the rest of the evening's challenges. She hoped Ava well in her mission but was grateful for a reprieve from Ava's jokes about her personal relationships… for a while anyway. Sarah didn’t take it personally, but the energy of the evening continued to build with surprises, and she didn’t like surprises.
Sarah heard the Stormbike roar to life, a unique sound from the older generation speed bike. It was named for the power plant’s visible display, a chemical reaction resembling a storm churning and turning behind steel glass. However, there was nothing to see as Ava had long extended her cloak around it. Instead, Sarah watched the key float through the air and briefly sparkle as it passed the balcony's environmental shield before picking up speed on its way down to Ava.
Ava could see Sarah’s silhouette above, watching. Time slowed for Ava, her implants increasing her heart rate with adrenaline in preparation for the catch. Her vision augmentations tracked the descent while her other hand adjusted the throttle. The bike answered her every desire as it moved slowly to intercept. Her fingers closed around the card, causing it to vanish in thin air.
Sarah whispered, “You got this,” admiring Ava's fluid choreography. The Stormbike roared with a deafening sound, screeching down the autoway with incredible acceleration. Leaves shook loose and swirled within hidden eddies.
The core’s subsonic purr shot straight through Ava's body. Without insulation, every microadjustment of the throttle sent variations of sensation against her thighs. The bike's systems had merged with her implants, reading her intentions with an intimacy. Her knees slightly weakened in the acceleration, forcing herself to focus. Merging onto the main autoway, lanes stretched out like dark ribbons, interrupted by lights from transport pods filled with passengers.
Her augmented vision painted tactical overlays across the autoway - patrol routes, drone paths, and sensor grids designed for automated response. Her speed unimpeded by organized traffic, she made excellent time carving impossible paths through Veridian Center security. In areas crowded with autoway shuttles, their lights blurred into a kaleidoscope of colors as she weaved through the traffic with the precision of a surgeon.
The first checkpoint was ahead like gates to a digital fortress. Security fields formed a grid of defensive geometries visible through her enhanced sight. She spotted a weakness immediately - a small variance for maintenance drones. Her calculations gave her very little margin and she would pass within mere inches above personnel working within an outbuilding, but that beat the alternatives.
Ava leaned forward, power building as she accelerated, each surge of energy threatening to push her over the edge of physical resistance. Her augmented senses expanded, taking in every detail and slowing time - the subtle shifts in the security fields, the positions of each guard, the exact trajectory needed to thread through their defenses.
----------------------------------------
Sarah's heart ached as she remembered seeing Maya on display on Cassandra's screens. Every instinct screamed to comfort her, to explain everything, but the mission had demanded patience. Now the wait was over as she entered the elevator, still transformed by the performance artist. The solitary dancer moved and slid along the glass as it responded to her painting the cityscape beyond, her body creating living shadows that merged with its background in abstracts. Her silver mesh dress caught reflections, creating deliberate rhythms. She never acknowledged Sarah's presence, lost in a private dialogue as her art moved to paint the scene below filled with dancers and more.
Sarah paused as she approached Maya, her attention drawn to a striking woman who could have been Sarah's twin, similar in both style and dress. Their laughter carried practiced lightness reaching Maya who turned as she recognized Sarah’s voice.
Maya immediately recognized the woman that she couldn’t stop admiring. Seeing them together brought confusion, they could be sisters. Sarah leaned in to whisper and then leaned back with a dark and bold stare as the woman looked down, shaking her head as if almost cowering. Sarah seemed satisfied, hugged her, and whispered again. The woman lifted her head and took her partner towards the bar.
Maya continued dancing with Nova, but her eyes were drawn to Sarah, who approached with a smile that barely masked her concern. Is she worried about me? Maya asked herself. Sarah glided effortlessly past her, caressing her arm and spinning her around playfully. “It's so good to see you,” Sarah said mid spin, “that took a lot longer than I planned.” Her tone was light as she shook her body, loosening and relaxing into the music.
“This is Nova,” Maya introduced her new friend.
“The runner?” Sarah asked already knowing the answer, but being polite acknowledging her skills. Maya watched as she approached Nova with similar grace as she had approached the woman from the other couple. She turned to see where they had gone, but couldn’t find them in a brief scan.
Sarah leaned into Nova with practiced confidence, inserting herself into the dancer's routine with fluid grace. Their bodies moved in mirror-perfect synchronization, Nova increasing her motion with strength. They drew appreciative murmurs from those around them. Sarah let her hand trail down Nova's arm, feeling the other woman's pulse quicken beneath professional composure. Then she leaned close, lips brushing Nova's ear, “Tell me exactly what you are doing for Cassandra.” Her tone was steal beneath a flowing silk scarf. Nova faltered imperceptibly, the only crack in her performance.
“It was a mistake,” Nova said. “Maya wasn’t interested. Cassandra…” She struggled to explain herself, hoping that she hadn’t offended anyone, and unsure why Cassandra had paid her to flirt. But Sarah recognized Nova's innocence, and how Cassandra could manipulate people. Nova was a premiere athlete. Sarah had questions, but those could wait.
Maya had stopped dancing, seeing Nova react the same as the other woman and shaking her head no after some shadowy secret. She was transfixed, her engineer's eye tracking Sarah’s movements with suspicion. Other women moved around them in elegant orbits. Sarah was satisfied and turned to see Maya. However, Maya held her in a harsh star as her expression turned into betrayal. Great, Sarah thought, messing up a good thing, again. Still, her protective instincts had to be satisfied.
"Let's talk," Sarah whispered as she offered her arm. Maya was having none of it, feeling like a pawn in some game. Confused by Sarah’s actions, mad that she had abandoned her and taken her to this bizarre place. Anger rose inside her as her fists began to clench. “Please relax, I’m sorry but we need to talk. Please follow me.” She made her way towards a side alcove. After another 10 feet, she turned. Maya was stationary. Sarah extended her hand, palm up as if offering something precious, beckoning her forward. Maya relented and softened. If anything she had grown to trust and admire Sarah. She set aside her rising emotions for the moment, the dance floor shifting into softer colors from a deep red.
----------------------------------------
The Stormbike’s hydraulic suspension reacted as Ava stood with an upward momentum. She caught her breath wondering why she didn’t try standing earlier, so used to sitting. The bike sprang into the air halfway up a transport as she rode moments at a narrow angle repeating the motion as the bike lept again reaching the top of the transport beside it. She accelerated, repeating the motion a third time in the split second that the front of the speeding bike’s front tire went beyond the edge of the top of the transport. The bike launched into the air but the trajectory was off target.
Her senses ablaze, implants flooded her consciousness with data. She kicked the bike sideways in the air. The world spun around her in a blur of lights and shadow, every muscle responding with augmented precision to keep the massive machine under control. The whip brought the bike into contact with the roof of the guardhouse with a split second to straighten before jumping a fourth time. Her trajectory was right on target as she sat again resting her body over the engines. The bike overloaded her senses as she exposed herself to it completely. She flew through the air clearing the tiny opening reserved for drones, her legs and body shaking, barely able to stand as she forced herself to prepare for the landing.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
----------------------------------------
“Ava’s biosigns spiked before I lost her,” the concern in Viktor’s voice carried over the comms to Sarah.
“I’m sure she’s fine, probably just going off-grid,” she replied dismissively. Her hands were full. The alcove's privacy field shimmered into opacity as Maya entered, closing behind her and muting the club's rhythms into a distant heartbeat. Sarah was standing. “Sit Maya,” she said sternly her usual patience absent from her voice.
“First, I’m sorry for so much. It isn’t lost on me what I’ve put you through tonight. I wanted you to have a great night but I didn’t factor in Cassandra’s jealousy. She saw how beautiful you are and we walked right into her game. I don’t know how else to say this, so just listen.” Sarah sat down beside her and took her hand in hers attempting to connect. She looked into Maya's eyes directly as she continued, “We watched from upstairs. Not just the party, but we watched you specifically. Cassandra even placed a look-alike to see if it would be drawn to me... or more importantly to see how I reacted if you didn't. I’m so sorry.”
Maya’s expression shifted unprepared for Sarah’s honesty. She had been on display for some sick game, manipulated. She thought about what Sarah would have seen… “Nova’s kiss.”
Sarah was going to keep Nova out of it. She looked away.
“I see,” Maya said, feeling completely exposed.
"Look," Sarah said, gently squeezing her hand. The music from the club changed as faint rhythms softened around their private alcove, creating an intimate space amid chaos. "I'm gay." The words hung between them, weighted with meaning. "Yes, I brought you as a plus one, but only because I wanted you to have fun. I intended to show you a wonderful night." She paused, studying Maya's face for any reaction. "I hope we can still do that."
“If I’m completely honest,” Maya said awkwardly, “it is a wonderful night.”
Sarah smiled, lifting her hand and kissing it gently, “You don’t have to say anything. All we have to do is find Nova, get some drinks, and enjoy ourselves.”
“Nova?” Maya was still processing the evening.
“Sure, just another innocent pawn in Cassandra’s game, harmless.” Sarah put Maya’s hand down and relaxed against the couch, her arm extending behind Maya but not touching her.
Maya settled deeper into the couch, surprised by how natural it felt to be here with Sarah. Despite the evening's revelations - or perhaps because of them - she found herself wanting to stay, to explore this new understanding between them. The music from the club stayed outside of their private cocoon. She felt comfortable. It wasn't just discovering a new world - she was discovering herself within it.
----------------------------------------
The Veridian Museum of Technology and Innovation rose before Ava. Its fluid architecture of majestic silver waves rising high above neighboring buildings. It was a testament to the merging of art and engineering. The building seemed to breathe in the night air, light reflecting off its curves with subtle bioluminescence. The feature won the Pritzker Prize for its significant impact on global culture and society. Its influence continues to inspire architects worldwide
Ava dismounted, her legs trembling with a carry-over effect, aftershocks of the bike’s raw power still coursing through her body. She shut off her feed after the jump for privacy. The bike performed far better than her toys, as she rode wave after wave of uncontrollable ecstasy unable to control herself. Most of the remaining ride was performed standing, which helped but didn’t stop her body from reacting to the bike. She admired the architecture of the museum, but after tonight's ride, she would never look at its rising and undulating waves the same way.
The museum's side entrance lay hidden beneath a feature of waterfalls, their carefully randomized patterns masking a sophisticated security grid. Her enhanced vision identified the threat indicators across multiple layers - motion sensors, thermal imaging arrays, and pattern recognition systems that could identify unauthorized neural signatures. All shut down beautifully as she approached with the keycard, still cloaked. The system didn’t know how to react to missing bioscans making it simple for her to imprint Cassandra’s with the flick of a wrist. The door's release carried a solid certainty for a successful mission.
Inside, the first gallery stretched before her like a cathedral to human innovation. A 1957 Ferrari 335 S Spider Scaglietti floated in a stasis field, its crimson paint catching subtle lights that highlighted every curve of its hand-formed aluminum body. Plaques told the story of Veridian's racing heritage, from the first automated pods to TransitTrack's cognitive rail integration.
Ava moved past displays that traced technological evolution - early augmentation prototypes in hermetically sealed cases, failed consciousness mesh experiments preserved in stasis, and the first Truth Gate's crystalline core, salvaged after an overload decades ago. Her enhanced senses picked up preservation fields surrounding many artifacts in their own bubble of carefully maintained atmosphere.
The warehouse entrance lay beyond the Formula One exhibition, where legendary machines from Earth's racing history stood like sleeping giants. A Mercedes-AMG W12 E Performance seemed to watch her pass, eagerly hoping someone would take it for a spin. Pit crew uniforms beside it carried lingering traces of faint champagne stains, visible from her enhanced vision.
Security thinned as she approached the storage sector. The automated systems focused on public spaces, leaving the archives protected mostly by obscurity and limited access. The key card granted her entry into a maze of shelves that stretched into darkness. Here, racing history lay dormant - spare parts from every era, early neural interface prototypes, and components that predated the Great Transit Disaster.
Her implants identified items from Kai’s list, lighting them up with small markers in her augmented display. She located them with surgical precision placing each on a floating transport pod that followed her through the maze. She delighted in seeing artifacts from the first Truth Gate trials, the core still holding a residual charge after thirty years in storage. As her fingers closed around it, she felt the same resonance that had nearly torn the city apart just days ago. If this piece of history might help them survive whatever came next, she would have to get it out first.
The building's preservation systems registered her presence as she lifted the coupling from its resting place. Alerts rippled through the security network, bureaucratic rather than urgent. There was no way to initiate the forms required to release this security, which was why she saved it for last. She now had minutes before automated responses escalated to human intervention. The coupling's weight surprised her - dense with possibility and potential catastrophe in equal measure.
The security grid's sensors could detect a ghost in the machine, but Ava had become something else entirely. She was a shadow among shadows, a ghost that moved like quicksilver through cracks in the system. She passed the Formula One exhibit before alarms burst to life. Red emergency lights painted the exhibits in hellish tones, and accusatory specters. The Ferrari flashed in the light, its spirit awakened by the opportunity for a chase. Her vision caught movement at the main entrance - security drones deployed in standard search patterns.
She reached the service door just as automated lockdown protocols engaged, closing it securely behind her, buying her precious seconds while security forces converged on her position. The Stormbike stood ready, her coiled spring. Its systems interfaced with her implants before she mounted before it vanished under her cloak. She stored the items in the sidecar quickly. Precious moments she would not be able to get back. She took a deep breath and fled into the night, accelerating rapidly and leaving only scattered reflections of her presence.
Behind her, the museum appeared to settle back into slumber, its treasures secure save a few small pieces of history now racing through Veridian’s streets once again.
----------------------------------------
"I needed the work," Nova's whisper carried raw honesty. "Cassandra pays well for... attention to certain guests. It's been innocent until tonight." Her Opal dress caught the light as she pulled back slightly, her professional mask slipping to reveal genuine regret. "I didn't expect you to be so..."
"Fun?" Maya had come around but needed to hear it from Nova for herself. They felt a connection with each other despite the original deception.
Sarah handed them a French 75, a refreshing cocktail made with champagne, gin, lemon juice, and sugar. “To Lezchic,” Sarah said with a wink as the others responded touching glasses, festivity replacing every other thought and emotion. They made their way closer to the dance floor as the music and room performed its magic spell carrying them along for the ride.
There was a bustle of activity as acrobats entered the dancefloor. They expanded, stretched, and moved in coordinated movements. Several were tossed high into the air, suspended in a magnetic field as they continued spinning and flipping overhead. Others flowed like liquid mercury between dancers, pulling them onto the floor and entertaining them to a masterpiece of acrobatic precision. They watched from the side as something moved Maya away from Sarah’s side, an invisible force but gentle. She looked over to see a key emerge from nowhere, dropped into the front of Sarah’s dress. Sarah looked at Maya and Ava appeared between them with a huge grin. Then she joined the acrobats as if she were one of them, performing stunts and flips. Maya was mesmerized as the crowd became increasingly energized by the performance as Sarah quietly slipped away to handle one final task.