Janice's arm was starting to go numb from hanging out the window in the chilly breeze for so long. She pulled it back inside and rolled up the window halfway, tucking her cold arm beneath the other.
The small talk between the two had more or less ended, leaving Janice to her own thoughts once again. She found herself looking up at Miyatama's impressive double-decker city standing tall above the rocky grey and green landscape, her mind meandering everywhere, occasionally glancing at passing signs.
110 km/h. Exit 52, 500m. Red and white triangle.
...Can people go in those support pillars? I wonder what the insides of those pillars looks like. The view must be amazing from up there. How did they even build that huge platform? For whatever reason, the rambly questions made her smile.
As they drove closer to Miyatama, the exceptionally tall city began blotting out the sunlight, covering the environment around them in crisp shade.
Janice hummed in disappointment. It was suddenly a lot cooler now that the sun was gone.
But then, she tilted her head to the side. The sun... we're orbiting that, right?
She peered out the window, looking out at the horizon to her right. There was an enormous “pillar” beyond the clouds that seemed to wrap around the sky, connecting the two horizons like a narrow, cloudy rainbow. It was something she never thought much about until the drive to Miyatama, since she had nothing but time to kill. Its details were impossible to make out due to the sheer distance, but its shape was unmistakable.
With the engineering marvel of Miyatama freshly in her thoughts...
“Hey,” Janice spoke up.
“Yep?”
“Forgive me if this is a stupid question, but this is a planet, right?”
“...What, like, the one we're on right now?”
“Yeah.”
Glenn hesitated. “What makes you ask that?”
Janice pointed out at the horizon, despite Glenn's attention being focused on the road. “You know that big pillar on the horizons?”
“I... do you mean the ring?”
“Maybe? The big line in the sky.” She winced at her utter failure to articulate what she meant.
“Ah. Yeah, that's a ring. Ban Vatnia, it's called.”
“Oh, a ring like the ones we see on other planets from space?”
Glenn shook his head and smiled. “It's a ring world.”
Janice stared at him, awaiting further explanation.
“It's an artificial habitat built in the shape of a ring that orbits Hallow. It's essentially a world just like Hallow, with customized climates and biomes to properly suit humanity.”
Janice's mouth hung ajar. She mouthed the words, “what?” before resuming her shocked expression.
Glenn quickly glanced over to her, chuckling at her face. “Yep. You thought Miyatama was crazy? Humans have done some truly wild things.”
“So... that ring... it orbits this planet,” Janice repeated, trying to get the idea through her mind.
“Yep.”
“So, hypothetically, if I got a spaceship, I could go there? And, like... live?”
“Yep. Although, you might not want to. I've heard the populace leans towards the snobby and elitist side. Plus, apparently its spaceports are way too stuffy about “unauthorized” visitors landing there.”
“Oh. Damn.”
“Still pretty cool though, no?”
“Yeah! It's...” she paused, struggling to find the right word, “...amazing.”
She reflected back to a certain moment during her time with Zev in the basement of that Maroon facility. She'd told them that humanity as a whole was far more powerful than volonkind, but she had no idea of the true scope of the humans' capabilities. It was humbling.
“Have you ever seen it at night?” Glenn asked. “It lights up the sky brilliantly.”
Janice was about to respond when her heart pounded with an all too familiar ache. The question instantly brought her back to the forest she once lived happily in, back to those times where she'd lie on the grass and watch the evening twilight above canopies of verdant leaves.
“Um, yeah... I think I have.” She wasn't sure – she'd definitely seen some strange light patterns in the night sky back then, but she never gave it much thought. Her understanding of Hallow and human culture was very limited during those times.
Undoubtedly, it was a simpler life.
“Catch it when its orbit lies it flat against the horizon,” Glenn continued, “it looks like a wall encompassing the world. Really cool.”
Janice simply hummed in acknowledgment, her mind still very distracted.
----------------------------------------
While driving under Miyatama's looming shadow, a passing car blinked its headlights as it drove by.
“Hm.” Glenn raised an eyebrow. “Cops ahead...?”
For once, this was something Janice knew about human culture. “Blinking headlights at other people, that means caution ahead, right?”
“Essentially. Usually police or a car wreck up ahead.”
Janice kept her eyes focused on the road ahead, trying to see if she could see anything. Traffic was relatively light on the highway, but as the duo approached Miyatama's outskirts, the road converged into a single lane, and traffic had suddenly back up into a standstill.
Glenn slowed the vehicle down and came to a stop as he turned off his music. “Wonder what this is about.”
Janice unrolled the window again and looked down the road. Up ahead on the side of the road was an orange sign reading, “checkpoint ahead.”
“It's a checkpoint,” she explained.
“Oh? What kind?”
“The sign up there doesn't say.”
“Hmm. This must be a recent thing. I've never had any traffic stops along this road before. Mind turning on a livecast?”
Janice looked at him, puzzled.
“Beside the stereo controls here, press the button to unlock the monitor.”
Sure enough, there was a small button labeled “monitor” beside the dashboard. When she pressed it, a small computer screen raised up from the passenger-side dashboard, with large buttons for GPS, livecasts, and auxiliary music control on the screen.
Janice tapped the livecasts button, and a list of what looked like radio stations appeared in a neat list after a brief loading delay.
“Oh, it's like a radio.”
“Yeah, that's right. Look for something local to the Miyatama or Ystets area.”
The list began with a couple fitting entries: Miyatama Community Watch and Local Region Weather (Ystets). Janice pressed the button beside MCW.
“–who went missing three days ago,” a man's voice spoke up from the truck's speakers. “Local authorities are on high alert and they are beginning a thorough investigation of the north-eastern area of Lower Miyatama.”
“The fourth disappearance this week,” another male commentator added with a click of his tongue. “I don't know, man. Something's going on. I hope those people return home safely.”
Janice pursed her lips. She felt as if she knew too much about that particular subject.
The livecast's host went on about local events in both levels of Miyatama city, mentioning new art exhibitions, street food vendors – a popular commodity in the lower city, apparently – and paid opportunities for volunteers for medical testing.
After that, they finally got what they were waiting for.
“But once again in case you missed our hourly traffic report, a warning to all road travelers this week: make sure to leave a few minutes early if you plan on leaving or entering Miyatama, as the MPD has set up road checks on several major roadways to check for “ties to volon activity,” which sounds a little strange to me, even with that monster outbreak at the Maroon complex.”
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“It is a little strange, and it might not be entirely legal, either,” began another man on the livecast. “Local police are demanding all travelers submit to blood tests on the road, and according to first-hand accounts, they're carrying this out with a handheld machine that pricks your skin; it's nothing worse than a tiny poke, and then they take a look at it and send you on your way.”
Blood. One of the only ways a volon could instantly be identified, and Janice knew it. Cold sweat flashed over her body.
“G-Glenn,” she shuddered.
“I know. I heard.” He put a finger to his lips and pointed to the dashboard computer.
“Now, what if you don't want to have a needle stuck in you, by police of all people?” the host asked.
“Well, that's what has people up in arms. Apparently they do have trained professionals present to administer these tests, but that doesn't have anyone any happier about the situation. It's a clear violation of your rights as a citizen of Hallow, and protesters have gathered around most of these checkpoints, trying to shut them down.”
“Not good,” Glenn said.
“We can't go through there...!” Janice replied.
“No... we can't.” He looked ahead. “Damn. No roads to turn to from here. Welp, hold on a moment.”
Janice didn't realize he meant it literally. The truck accelerated and lurched to the left as Glenn did a quick u-turn, pulling out of the line of traffic, crossing over into the oncoming lane.
“W-whoa! Geez!” Janice hung on to the handle beside the top of the door.
“Sorry. Can't risk it. There's a smaller road that leads to Miyatama a couple minutes back this way.” He straightened the vehicle out into the lane. “It'll take us a while longer to get there though.”
“Yeah...” Janice looked back out the rear window, hoping nobody paid their stunt driving any attention. About fifteen seconds later, another vehicle did the same maneuver – a beat up pickup not unlike Glenn's. She worried it might've been someone pursuing them, but after a while, it just seemed like someone with a similar thought process.
Minutes passed as they drove back the way they came. Janice periodically checked the rear window for any suspicious followers, but nothing came of it. They seemed to be in the clear despite Glenn's questionable u-turn.
He took the next exit and slowed down, the two volons now traveling on a narrow two-lane road between a shallow valley of rocky hills.
“Do the police want you for anything?” Janice asked. “Like, officially?”
“Officially? As opposed to... unofficially?” Glenn seemed puzzled.
“Uh, well, you know what I mean. Are you wanted?”
“Ah. No, I'm an angel. They have nothing on me.”
Janice gave an amused snort. “Clean as a whistle, then?”
“That's right.” He smiled. “I wouldn't be risking a cross-city drive if I was. Way too much surveillance.”
“Let me guess – the cameras mounted on every second road sign?”
“They like to keep only a few bright and visible so people lower their guard after passing them.”
Janice thought about Maroon's containment facility. They probably did the same strategy with the cameras there too. Yikes.
Slowly but surely, the rocky terrain parted, and was gradually replaced with the sight of buildings dotted with countless little lights...
...and another roadblock.
“Fuck.” Glenn slowed down.
Janice inhaled sharply.
Before another moment passed, Glenn leaned forward and squinted his eyes. “Hold on, that's not a checkpoint...”
“It's not?”
“Oh.” He hummed in dismay.
As the duo approached, it became clear what was blocking their way – a crime scene in the middle of the road just next to a gas station, taped off and surrounded by emergency vehicles with lights blaring.
Just before the scene was a series of orange signs directing all drivers to turn around and find another route to enter the city.
“No way,” Glenn huffed.
Janice said nothing, instead concerned for the situation ahead, trying to piece together what was going on.
Glenn stopped the truck right before the sign blockade.
“Shit. Well, looks like your best bet would be to go on foot from here.” Glenn didn't sound particularly happy to break the news.
“No other way around, I'm guessing?” Janice asked.
“I'm afraid not. These are the only two ways into Miyatama from Ystets.”
“Damn... okay. Still, thank you for the ride.”
“Try to get to street 7-29. It's got a few reliable places to stay there. People I know.”
Janice quickly pulled out her phone. “7-29... let me write that down here.” She navigated to the notepad program and typed it in. “Got it. While I have you here – do you know of any real psychology labs around Miyatama?”
“Real?”
“As opposed to... Maroon.”
“Ah. You'd probably find something along those lines near the Maroon branch, but it's been cordoned off after Tenna's attack. That said, I happen to know of a psychotherapy studio a little ways from 7-29. By some nightclubs. I don't think you'll find your guy there, but maybe some employee can give you a lead.”
“Okay, thanks!”
“And...” Glenn continued, reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a small black wallet and produced a few pieces of paper from it. “You're going to need it.” He handed them to Janice.
She looked down at them. Srakna... that's money! “How much is that in all?”
“60 large.”
“60,000?! I... thank you so much, Glenn! But I don't even know how I can repay you for this... for everything!”
“Relax. It's pocket change. Maybe someday you'll find some way to help me out, but until then, don't sweat it. Just don't die out there.”
“Psh, thanks for the vote of confidence,” she joked as she took the money and pocketed it. Janice unbuckled her seat belt and opened the door.
“I'm a call away,” Glenn reminded her.
“Yeah, thank you!” She stepped outside and shut the door, waving as Glenn accelerated and turned around, disappearing into the distance.
Suddenly, she was on her own. It'd been far too long since she'd been alone with no supervision of any sort; the sensation was jarring.
She took a deep breath. Okay, let's do this. You're a tough girl. For Carson... and Zev... and the rest.
Janice walked over to the gas station on the left side of the road. There was just enough room for pedestrians to safely skirt around the edges of the police line. As she walked by the crime scene, she was overtaken by morbid curiosity. She couldn't help but snoop around, trying to find out what happened. What could it have been?
We didn't hear about it on that livecast. This must be a recent incident.
Standing too close would risk grabbing the attention of the police, so she stood a safe distance away as she craned her head around, trying to look by the emergency workers attending the scene. A few other average-looking humans were doing the same thing, so she figured she probably wouldn't be singled out for being curious.
Then, she caught a glimpse of something terrible – a leg, unmistakably. A human leg, clothed in the remainder of a pair of jeans, detached from its body. The ground beneath it was stained dark red.
Janice gasped. She looked away and power-walked past the crime scene, pretending she hadn't seen it.
Why did I have to look...?! she scolded herself. It was a volon... it had to be. Why else would there be a leg lying on the street? But... was it Tenna's volon? Or Maroon's...? The answer to that question wouldn't have made a difference to her, so she dashed it from her mind and focused on her objective.
7-29, Janice thought. Up ahead about 100 metres was an intersection, which also had a traffic blockade preventing any vehicles from coming down her road. Thankfully, the sidewalks were still open to travel on.
She kept her eyes up, looking for anything that would help get her bearings.
“15-1,” she read the sign above the intersection aloud. “Wait, hold on,” she mumbled as she reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone.
This thing has GPS, right? Sure enough, her memory proved accurate. However, upon opening the GPS program, she was greeted with a lengthy loading screen that didn't seem to be making any progress. Moments later, a popup told her she needed to download an update, and when she pressed “OK,” the phone told her she needed an internet connection to do so.
Crap. She had no idea how to get that working. Don't panic... these street numbers sound orderly. They're probably arranged in a grid.
To test that theory, she continued onward to the intersection, waiting until the pedestrian signal turned on to announce it was safe to cross. As she traversed further into the city, the sound of passing traffic picked up all around her, and the enormous shadow cast by High Miyatama made it feel as if it was already nighttime, with the world illuminated only by street lamps, storefronts, and rushing headlights.
A minute later, she arrived at the next intersection.
15-2 – great! Now, what about the other direction...
She repeated the process, turning left instead of crossing the intersection. More and more humans were going about their daily lives as she proceeded deeper into the city, but she took a deep breath and steeled herself.
Glenn told you you're fine. No one's going to know. Have a little faith, Janice.
As she hoped, nobody paid her any mind while passing by. She even noticed that some of the humans weren't actually humans at all; some of them were machines.
She smiled a bit. Maybe they're used to strange folk walking about.
A couple minutes later, another crossroad lay before her. 14-2.
Score one for me! With that, her plan became clear. Go from 14-2 to 7-2, then from 7-2 to 7-29. Now that she had a clear means to reach her end, her muscles were already less stiff, and breathing had become far easier.
I probably won't look like such an outlier now that I have some purpose here.
----------------------------------------
Walking eased her psyche even more. She already felt much safer being in public compared to only a few hours prior.
Janice soon discovered that the city wasn't built in a perfect grid pattern, but it was still arranged in such a way that she didn't have much trouble figuring out how to get from one major road to the next.
It was a considerable trek to get to 7-29. She must've been walking for at least an hour, barely resisting the urge to scout out a store or cafe for some refreshments.
Regardless, she had arrived at her destination without incident. And, as promised, a row of motels and inns lined the right side of the street; she wasn't sure which one Glenn meant when he said “he knew some people there,” but asking a couple of the establishments couldn't hurt.
Well... while I'm in the walking mood... what about that psychotherapy place?
There weren't any clear indicators or signs directing her to local clinics or therapy labs. I should've asked him for specifics.
To her surprise, 7-29 seemed like it led to a dead end with no major roads branching off it – a stark contrast to how most of the streets that she'd walked were laid out. With only one way to go, she proceeded onward with a quick shrug.
Maybe I could get used to this!
As she proceeded down the relatively narrow street, the density of pedestrians rapidly increased, but these didn't seem like “normal” humans. Most – if not all – were decorated with flashy neon outfits, some wore helmets and masks, and quite a few of them were dancing on the sidewalk and road alike. As before, some of them were actually robots, too.
He mentioned nightclubs... maybe I'm close? Hmm... humans have double-decker cities and ring worlds, but they put therapy buildings beside nightclubs...? It was weird, even to her.
The road ended in a cul-de-sac brimming with partygoers and booming bass from some distant music.
These people don't seem to be minding anybody else around them, at least. Just act like you belong. It's worked so far.
Onward she went to the end of the road.
Casually sauntering past both individuals and groups of people proved simple enough. As she noted earlier, nobody paid her much attention at all.
The right side of the cul-de-sac expanded into a short lane ending with a brightly glowing building, its front wall fashioned into a huge, open entrance dotted by sleazy looking people and general filth.
Geez... well, Glenn did say it was by here...
She cautiously meandered over and gave it a cursory inspection. No guards or anything of the such in sight. The music quickly grew in volume as she approached, but not so much so that she couldn't bear it.
This can't possibly be the right place, can it?
As she stepped inside the club's wide open entrance, she looked around for a moment before making eye contact with a nearby human, who sported a head of striking cyan hair.
Instead of panicking, an idea formed in her head.
“I-I beg your pardon – can I ask you a question? It won't be long, promise,” she asked, suddenly lacking her prior confidence.
“Uh, sure,” the human replied with an incredulous look on their face. “What's... going on?”
“Do you know if there are any, umm... psychology... research... laboratories in this city?”
Great – way to mess that one up, Jan!