With the news of the bounty Fraya turned to the last option in the game. “Tell me more about the south west polities.” Fraya instructed the AI.
The AI paused for a second, an eternity for a computer. “Pulling all available data the south west polities are numerous 2 or 3 world alliances, pocket empires, unions, or groups that have banded together. It is also a haven for pirates, outlaws, and privateers. The region is regarded as one of the most brutal and war torn regions of the game.”
Considering Fraya had just been involved in the start of a war between two vast and powerful star nations that meant something.
“Set destination to the general direction of south west polities. What is the most powerful, stable, and law abiding polities that will not ask too many questions and everything is for sale? You know like America? Just kidding! Those assholes use to collect every fucking online search, email, text, phone call, or purchase you ever made in your life! Glade those assholes are died.”
“The Benton Alliance matches your description. They are a collection of four worlds each heavily industrialized, with the most powerful navy in the region. They sell everything to anybody. Drugs, weapons, warships, it is estimated that over 70% of the region buys something form them, even protection in the form of mercenaries. Listed mercenaries in the Benton Alliance have a high contract completion rating and they are much sought after because of this.”
Fraya grinned, that sounded perfect! “Okay set the auto pilot to the Benton Alliance! I want to go to the most populated world in the group.” Fraya reason was simple, more people meant an easier time to disappear into the crowd.
“The Benton system is set into the auto pilot.” With that the hanger bays doors opened fast and the craft took off, jumping into warp space as soon as they cleared the hanger.
“What is the faster then light drive called? Didn’t you say this game was based on real and theoretical physics?”
“That is correct. The faster then light drive is based on the theoretical Alcubierre Drive. Basically the drive stretches space time into a wave, the front of the wave contracts space time in front of the ship, and the wave behind the craft expands space time, allowing the craft to ‘surf’ the waves of space time in the warp bubble. The craft itself is not moving but is carried on the wave.”
“Interesting. Can I log out now and what will happen if we are attacked?”
“You can log out and if the craft is attacked a warning will be sent to you. No one can board the craft if no users are log in.”
“Great. Please log me out.”
Fraya appeared back inside her plain condo with the AI standing off to the side a mirror image of herself. That reminded Fraya of something that had been annoying her. “Okay I am feed up with calling you the AI! You need a name.”
“I am an AI I do not need a name.” The AI deflected.
“O no you are getting a name! If you don’t have a preference I will start calling you sparky!”
The AI considered that. “Then I submit the names Athena or Minerva.”
Fraya bobbed her head in acknowledgment. “Both goddess of intelligent and wisdom. Good choices! I think we should go with Minerva, she was also the goddess of arts and crafts and you are using nanites to literally craft me a new body so I think Minerva is most appropriate.”
“Then I am now designated as Minerva.”
Fraya smiled. “Good to finally be introduced formally Minerva! Now with that out of the way what’s this about a bounty on my head?”
Minerva looked at her with her usual formal expression, Fraya wasn’t sure the AI had any other expression. “The capture of the Empire’s flagship enraged the Emperor. One of his closest advisers is a user and he offered to deal with it to gain favor with the Emperor. He set out a 100 million dollar bounty on your death in real life.”
Fraya sighed. “Shit another self-important asshole.” Fraya started pacing. She had an idea but it was extreme although compared to staying alive was not that extreme.
Turning to Minerva she asked. “Can the nanites change my face? Can you provide a new identity in the immersive worlds?”
Minerva paused then confirmed Fraya questions. “Yes to both. A new identity is relatively straight forward. I will need to find and delete every scan you have had in the immersive world but this is done with the right fees going to the right locations.”
Fraya cocked her head. “Are you telling me that the rich just buy new identities?”
Nodding Minerva replayed. “Yes. Not only the rich, politicians, criminals, government agents, there are a number of reasons why someone needs to change their identity. The changes usually happen only in the immersive worlds but with the nanites already working on your body changing your face will not be an issue.”
“Aren’t politicians just rich criminals?” Fraya smiled and laughed. “Okay start changing me but do not make me looked hideous! And not too beautiful! That just makes you a target! Just moderate to above average please.”
“I well correlate all current images that have a close match to your projected final features that you would have had after the nanite improvements and compile new facial and body features that alter you significantly enough that you will be not be recognized. Studies have shown that even a slight alteration to hair color, skin color, or light makeup can make someone unrecognizable.”
Freya’s chuckled. “Great! That means I will almost look like I was going to anyway! Considering I’m 13 years old and don’t know what I’ll look like in my twenties it is no big loss. Just how long will deleting my information and changing my face take?”
“If I retask the nanites to alter you facial features and you authorize the expanse of information deletion and creation I can have everything completed in four days.”
“Will I have to change my name too?” Fraya was worried, she liked her name.
“There are tens of thousands of Fraya’s in the world and hundreds of thousands non player characters and users in the immersive worlds, changing your first name is not required but it is recommended you change your last name.” Minerva reassured her but also commanded she change her last name. Though the only tie Fraya had left to her murdered mom and dad was her last name.
Sighing heavily and knowing keeping her last name wasn’t worth her death she tried a new last name. “How about Valten? It is close to Vallon.”
Minerva considered the name. “That is different enough that it should hide you. I will create a completely new identity for Fraya Valten.”
“Okay! Also can you make me a citizen of Texas?”
Identity records were hard for the government of each area to confirm but you still needed one to enter most of the different regions. That was the reason she had not moved away from Los Angles, she didn’t have any identifications, what with the fighting and running for her life.
“Confirmed. Authorize the virtual credit transactions?”
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“Yes go ahead. Make me a bullet proof identity! 100 million dollars if enough for even the governments to execute me!”
Fraya started pacing again as a new worry reared up. “Also the pod! It clearly shows it is an experimental unit and I bet even a cursory glance at it will reveal the extent of the pods features. Is there any way to change the pod to hide the fact that the pod is not a normal pod?”
Minerva processed her request and was silent for several seconds. “I have studied the matter and can reconfigure the outside and most of the internals to look like a normal pod. I have accessed classified documents on the dark net of special foam that will mask the signature of the fusion reactor. I can accomplish your request. The new configuration would take dismantling the pod to found it is not a commercially available pod. “
Fraya beamed. “Great! So the pod and me will get a facelift. So now that I can’t move forward with anything until both are accomplished, why don’t you put me to sleep until you finish in four days.”
Fraya knew herself, if she had to stay inside the condo she would go stir crazy. It was funny because normally she would have stayed inside anyway but being told she could not go outside would nag at her.
“Please confirm Fraya, you want to be placed into habitation until the facial reconfiguration is complete?”
“Yes! Also after you have the new identity, please research the best way to get to San Antonio.”
Fraya would have liked to go to Houston but a large part was permanently flooded and other sections flooded regularly.
“Confirmed. Placing you into hibernation in 5..4..3..” Freya didn’t her the rest because she was already unconscious.
Fraya came to with startlingly clarity. Fraya was used to being a light sleeper and being ready to kill someone when she was awakened but she had never awakened without the hint of drowsiness. Seating up Fraya found herself on the bed in the Earth 2 condo. Swinging her legs to the side and planting her feet on the carpet Fraya pushed herself up and walked towards the closed door. Opening it she saw Minerva standing in front of the kitchen counter. The counter doubled as a table with high chairs pushed in under the counter. It allowed someone to sit and converse with someone in the kitchen but Fraya had not even eaten anything in the immersive world so both the counter table and kitchen had gone unused.
Minerva saw her walking into the room and reported. “It has been six days. Facial reconfiguration has been a complete success and facial recognition shows only a 47% match even with your facial features alter only 11.49%. Your new identity has been created at the cost of 138,976.64 virtual credits. The pod has been reconfigured and testing shows no detectable fusion reactor or oddities.”
Fraya took a moment to processes the avalanche of information. “Okay good to know my face was only changed 12% which both sounds little and a lot at the same time. That is a large amount of virtual credits but not compared to the almost ten million still left. Even if it was every dime I had it still would be cheap compared to my assured assassination. I am glad the pod cannot be easily found out considering how many died for it. Now did you find a way to get to San Antonio safely?”
Minerva nodded; it was still weird to see herself mirrored. Fraya wondered how identical twins coped with seeing the doppelganger every day.
“Yes there are a verity of safe ways to reach San Antonio. The most expansive option is to hire a mercenary company to fly in and pick you up. Cost estimates for that option are over half a million dollars. The second cheaper way is to go to the Los Angles cargo port military base and fly out. This has heavy risk of being shot down, either by gangs or other governments, especially the northern union. The cheapest way and least safe way is to drive to your destination. An alteration to that plan is to drive to Phoenix or Tucson Arizona and then fly to your destination. Arizona is part of the union, so after you reach either city it should be relatively safe, beware though, outside the cities it is mostly unguarded but the highway are will protected.”
Fraya had been expecting something like that. “So drive to Phoenix which is the closer city?” Getting conformation from Minerva, Fraya continued. “Stay on the highway, because the areas outside of them are fucking death traps, then try to get on a plane and hope to fucking god that assholes don’t shoot it down but it will be less likely to happen then taking a plane form the port, is that the alternative plan?”
“That is correct.” Minerva agreed.
“Great! Now I just need to get out of the pod, load it up, and drive through territory were I will be at risk of brutal death, a quick death if I’m lucky.”
Minerva shook her head. “Negative the pod is underwater.”
“Goddamit! How far underwater?” Fraya had seen the mold on the walls, add to the fact that a well fortified place was unoccupied, and that should have clued Fraya in that something was amiss, she was just too concerned about soldiers hunting her down at the time to pay attention.
“Based on readings, about a foot above the pod.” Minerva helpfully explained.
Freya groaned if it was not one thing it was another. “Will the water affect the pod if it is opened?”
“Negative. The pod’s electronics are sealed and nanites can clean and flush out the pod without a problem.”
Groaning again Fraya gave commands to Minerva. “Okay wake me up and give be a moment to collect myself, then I will tell you when to open the pod.”
Fraya blinked and she found herself in the pods enclosure. “A little warning next time!”
Turning on the flashlight still in her hands she braced herself then order the cover to open. The cover was open only a crack when ice cold water started rushing in. “Fuck!” Fraya muttered as she pushed cover fulling open and stood up.
The flashlight showed the garage was now completely flooded with ice cold rain water. Fraya plunged her hand into the water looking for she shoes she so carefully had taken of and only came up with one.
“Goddamit! When it fucking rains..!” Fraya trailed off as she swung the flashlight around looking desperately for her other shoe. Luckily it was a few feet away wedged against a tire. Fraya put on the one soaked shoe she had and then hopped and waded to the other. Standing on one leg she tried as quickly as she could to jam on the other shoe.
With a wet squelch Fraya now had on her boots and was standing in cheat deep water. Muttering every curse word she knew Fraya waded to the truck she had stolen form the wolf gang. Thankfully the truck was one of the high 4x4 trucks that stood just out of the water, less than an inch separated the water and the truck cab. Pulling open the door, Fraya climbed in. Starting the truck took a few tries but it finial turned over on the third attempt. Turning on all the lights, even the ones mounted to the roll bar, Fraya flooded the garage with blinding white light.
Letting the cab warm up, Fraya slowly rolled the truck forward. Taking a deep breath Fraya opened the cab door and jumped out, splashing herself in more cold water. Slowly wading to the back Fraya pulled down the tailgate and grabbed the ramp. Placing it into the water she set it up and then waded to the pod. Gathering herself she grabbed the sides of the pod and pulled. The water weighed it down and for a moment Fraya thought it wouldn’t budge but with a grunt of effort the pod finally shifted.
Pulling it through the water, with the water actually being some help, Fraya finally dragged the pod to the ramp. Getting it up the ramp was a lot harder as the water weighed it down and without the bouncy provided by the surrounding water the water logged pod was a bitch to drag up the ramp.
Yanking in fits and starts Fraya finally managed to get it into the bed of the truck. Breathing heavily Fraya stopped for several minutes to catch her breath. Recovered somewhat Fraya tossed camouflaged netting that was lying in the bed over the pod and walked back down the ramp, grabbing the ramp she threw it on top of the pod to hold the netting down and slammed the tail gate shut.
Wading this time toward the steel doors, Fraya unlatched the bar securing them closed and was almost drowned in the ensuing rush of water. Sputtering to the surface Fraya started to half swim, half jump through the water, needing to get out of the underground garage before it completely flooded and did drown her.
Getting back to the truck Fraya climbed in, the warm cab hitting her shivering form was balm. Fraya had to complete a three point turn and backed into abandoned cars several times, but she managed to turn the big vehicle around and faced the still onrushing water. Thanks to the powerful engine Fraya fought the rushing water and slowing made it up the ramp.
After a long climb and hitting the cement walls serval times she reached the ground level. The water here was only three feet deep and Fraya easily drove out of the garage. Fraya debated on turning off the lights and in the end turned off the flood lights and dimmed the headlights. Having bright lights on would have guaranteed someone attacking her.
“Turn right here.” Almost caused Fraya to slam into a park car. Slamming on the breaks Fraya sat for a moment her heart beating wilding in her chest. “Minerva!” She shouted.
“Affirmative.” Minerva replied in her head.
“How the fucking fuck are you in my head!” Having voices in her head did not sound good.
“As I stated before the pod is designed to enhance you and the nanos and find a way to combine the two. A simple chip was created in your cerebral cortex to facilitate this goal.” Minerva said as calm as ever.
Breathing deeply Fraya started driving again in the torrential downpour. Turning on the street Minerva had directed she asked. “Can you see what I see?”
“Yes, the chip allows me to access all of your senses. Turn left at the next street.”
Fraya was at once concerned and not at the same time, Fraya had spent the last week locked into the pod and Minerva had Fraya at her complete mercy, if Minerva really had wanted to harm her she had more than enough opportunities.
Slowly following Minerva’s directions she made it to the highway, thankful for the chip interface for time being because otherwise she would have been completely lost. Once she found I-10 is was just taking it for four hundred miles to Phoenix.