“3….2….1…. FIGHT!”, as the buzzer rang, Freya dashed forward at maximum speed, her war-axe trailing behind her. Just before she reached her opponent, she abruptly stopped and stepped back once, calmly spacing herself just far enough outside of Fel’Keza’s reach to dodge the incoming swipe of his claws. Taking advantage of the missed swipes, she dashed into range once again, knocking Fel’Keza off-balance with a well timed strike of her war-axe.
Without wasting any time, Freya immediately followed up with a vertical slice, launching Fel’Keza around three metres into the air, before jumping up herself to meet him mid-air with another attack…
“Dash into range, dashback to dodge the swipe, dash into jab to stun, followed by up-special to knock him up. Then it’s just air-juggling with a couple bounces for resets and we should be golden…” Thea calmly reflected upon her gameplan, clicking her tongue at the sub-par performance she had portrayed so far. “Could’ve been more than a second faster on the last round, I’m really off my game today…”
Seven seconds later, the game screen flashed with the announcement of the winner.
WINNER: Freya
Score: 3 - 0
FLAWLESS VICTORY
Thea took off the VR Helmet, unwinding her dirty blonde hair from the cable that attached her controller to the arcade machine, before she carefully detached it from the input port. She gently wound the cable around the controller, making sure to leave enough leeway for the cable to coil around it and hopefully not break internally.
Most players preferred to use the neural-link to play games, due to the ease of access, simple handling and superior performance created by the missing lag-time between the input and triggering of the action; but Thea had always favoured the more antique command interface of a controller. Just two years ago she had finally managed to get her hands on one as a prize for winning the local arcade tournament. The very one she was caringly placing into its protective casing in her bag now.
It had originally been intended as a collector's item for the winner of the tournament, as controllers were not seen as an input device anymore, ever since the mainstream introduction of the neural-link about 600~ years ago. While it took some time for most people to accept the new technology, by now, the amount of newly produced controllers was exactly 0, as far as Thea knew.
She had searched for years to try and find a way to acquire one so she could stop using Thomas’ old showpiece for her competitive matches, but had continuously failed to do so, as they were simply collector's trophies at this point and she sorely lacked the funds to buy anything from a collector, much less an old-world electronic.
With a slight smile on her face, as she reminiscently thought about her past woes of acquiring her old-world device, she finished packing up and shouldered her old, worn bag with the one remaining synth-leather strap before heading towards the front-desk of the arcade to say goodnight to Thomas.
Without realising it herself, it had already become quite late, but there was nothing she could do about it. It was the last day before the monthly reset, after all! She had to get all the remaining highscores set and finish all her competitive matches today, otherwise she would miss out on this months’ drawings and prizes.
By this point, nobody around her age was still around in the arcade. The night was home to the old folk. Adults and Fossils alike gathered here at night, to lament about their lives while drinking cheap alcohol and playing video games from their childhood, reminding them about a better time. Thea knew she didn’t belong here at this time of day, so she quickened her steps.
“Ahhh, looks like you’re finally done? I was getting worried there, Thea.” Thomas greeted her from behind the front desk. “Hope all went well? Got everything lined up for tomorrow?” he inquired in his usual friendly tone.
“Yes, yes...! I know, I’m late! So many people challenged me and my Freya this month, I hadn’t anticipated that at all… The devs really ought to put a limit on challenges, lest I’ll be swamped so much that I can’t finish all of them every month in the future…” she playfully pouted. “Thanks for always letting me stay, Thomas. You know, I really appreciate it. It won’t happen again!”
“Yeeees, I get it, Thea. You say that every month, you know?” the mildly corpulent man chuckled, while swiping a bang of his greasy black hair away from his eyes. “Now, get going. We don’t want Old Man James to get uppity again, you know how old war vets can get... I’ll see you tomorrow at the usual time.” Just before he turned away from Thea to continue his work, he spoke again. “Oh and thank you for the fixes on the tech issues, as per usual. You’ll find some extra credits in your account for all the work you’ve done this month. While I can’t hire you officially, never let anyone say I don’t treat my people well! Remember to leave the keys with me, before you zoom off.”
With a bright smile, Thea slammed the keyring onto the front-desk “THANK YOU, THOMAS! You’re the absolute best there is! Thank you so much, I really don’t know what I’d do without you! I’ll be sure to let all of them know!”, while she wasn’t exactly sure who “them” were, she’d be found dead in a gutter before she let anyone bad-mouth Thomas. Not on her watch!
After pulling down the hood of her hoodie deep enough to hide her face, she sprinted out of the arcade with a renewed burst of energy, meeting the night-life atmosphere of Lumiosia’s Undercity head on. The usual aroma of rusted metal, spilled alcohol and way too many humans in one place assaulted her nose, but she paid it no mind. This is where she had grown up, after all.
With practised ease, Thea ran along the alleyways of the undercity, jumping over broken crates and humans alike without stopping, pretending she was a ninja from the old movies that Old Man James loved to watch. Passing by one of the few still maintained paved roads of the undercity, she quickly made a stop at the nutrient paste machine, to pick up an extra dosage of the chicken-flavoured one. Tomorrow was reset-day, after all. She needed to be on her a-game. At least… that’s how she justified the extra expenditure to herself.
Quickly checking her account, she allowed herself a slight smile. “734 Imperial Credits… I don’t think I’ve had this much money in my entire life… Thomas really is the best!” She also noted the winnings from her competitive matches as being higher than the month before. “It ain’t gambling if you really ARE that good!” she mused Old Man James’ Golden Rule #3 to herself with a cheeky grin.
Packing away the two chicken-flavoured nutrient packs, she picked up where she left off with a start. Just a couple minutes later she finally reached her destination: An old, worn-down metal shack located in an alleyway behind a dilapidated office complex.
To Thea, this was simply “home”.
As she scanned in her wrist-bracelet to the rudimentary security system at the door, she pulled down her hood and started to rummage around her bag for the previously stowed away nutrient packs. It was easier to appease an angry old man with some superior food, after all.
“Well, well, well. If it isn’t the long-lost Thea herself…” came the raspy voice of Old Man James through the slowly opening metal door. Thea knew this spiel all too well. Old Man James was a stickler for rules, especially those regarding being “on time”. He would often say “this would not fly in the UHF, missy!” when scolding her.
“I brought chicken packs!” she quickly interjected the brewing chiding.
“... Chicken, eh? … Alright then, I guess we should eat first,” the raspy voice answered after a second of deliberation. Thea had guessed right once again. Even Old Man James would let rule violations slide for a chicken pack! Stepping inside of her home, Thea dropped off her bag together with her mud- and grime-covered boots at the entrance, before fully entering the main living room/kitchen.
Her home, or rather, Old Man James’ home that she also lived in, was a simple construction. It had a living room/kitchen with a single table and two old chairs, two small bedrooms and a bathroom that even had a shower. It was fairly luxuriant for the undercity and Thea was very happy to be able to live here, even though she rarely showed it. Being able to have her own room was something that most others around her age wouldn’t even dare to dream of!
She made her way towards the nutrient machine to heat up the chicken packs for the both of them, as Old Man James came into the living room/kitchen from his bedroom. “Good to see you well, Thea. Welcome home,” he offered with his usual raspy voice and a warm smile on his old, grizzled face.
Old Man James was a veteran. A true one at that, not one of those fakes that merely took civilian duties and touted off the UHF’s achievements as their own. Old Man James had the years and permanent injuries to prove it. Thea often ended up wondering if Old Man James had been considered handsome before. He carried himself with dignity and an unnatural poise, despite his ravaged and dilapidated body. His face however could not be saved, no matter how much dignity he willed into being. Covered with scars and burn marks, it was impossible to call Old Man James handsome, at least nowadays.
He didn’t talk much about himself, so Thea had no real way to know how he truly felt or much about the personal life of Old Man James. What he did talk about a lot, however, was the wars he was a part of, the UHF, his squad and his experiences in the Marines. It was truly how he defined himself as a human being and frankly, Thea was quite envious of that fact.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
After all, she didn’t really have anything to define herself by, except for holding highscores in a local arcade or winning some competitive matches in video games. But alas, a backwater such as Lumiosia had little chance to see a full recruitment drive from the UHF, much less the undercity she called her home. She often wondered how Old Man James had ended up down here, but every time she tried to pry that information out of him, he deflected. Over time it had become abundantly clear to her that she was not going to learn about this part of his history, no matter how much she wanted to.
Old Man James walked over to the singular table situated next to the cold metal wall with his typical, unusually poised stride. Thea often told him that he had a metal rod stuck up his ass, as Old Man James seemed incapable of drooping or relaxing his musculature, and simply shook her head at the sight with a grin.
“Yes… yes. I know, metal rod, ass. If you had been through what I have been through, you wouldn’t be spouting your nonsense, missy,” Old Man James grumbled as he sat down on one of the old chairs next to the table, causing it to creak slightly under the weight. While he looked well-trained and lean, Old Man James possessed an unusual density when it came to his overall mass. While he’d only be pegged at around 70-80 kg at most, in truth, he weighed more than 300 kg. He blamed it all on the UHF, but he always refused to elaborate when pressed further by Thea. She guessed it must have been some kind of “experiment gone wrong” or something.
Thea took out the two heated nutrient packs from the machine and placed them on the table. One in front of herself and one for Old Man James. It felt nice to be able to return home like this and share a meal between the two of them. Over the years this had become their little ritual. A form of normalcy in this otherwise drab and twisted world. Living in the undercity meant that crime and death were only one unlucky encounter away. Even if she was safe with Old Man James, whenever she was going about her business alone, it was never guaranteed that she’d return safely or at all.
“Soooooo…. I got another Flawless today!” Thea opened with a bright smile. “Also, Thomas gave me some extra cash for helping out more than usual this month. You wouldn’t believe how many machines broke down! It was absolute mayhem! I swear it’s those damn Fossils spilling their cheap alcohol over the machines, I just KNOW it!”
“... I’d really appreciate it if you didn’t call them Fossils… Most of them aren’t even a third my age, after all…” Old Man James retorted with a frown on his scarred face before continuing. “Great work on the Flawless. Make sure to bet as much as you can on ‘em. After all, it ain’t gambling- ” “-if you really ARE that good!” Thea finished the sentence with a big grin on her face.
“Aye. I see you’ve learned quite well these past years, hehe,” he responded with a deep chuckle of his own. “Never say I didn’t teach ya nothing, missy.
"My Golden Rules will pay dividends for decades to come, mark my words!” Old Man James declared while playfully raising his fork towards the ceiling.
“Tomorrow is reset day, so I’ll be out all day, as per usual,” Thea informed him, while shovelling a big fork of chicken paste into her mouth, slowly savouring the taste with a satisfied expression on her face. It had been MONTHS since she had gotten to enjoy her favourite meal like this!
“Oh, that’s tomorrow? Wasn’t it just… like… a couple days ago…? Time really flies, huh…?” Old Man James dejectedly stated. “Thanks for the delicious meal, by the way. You know, you don’t have to waste your precious credits on this old man. The UHF made sure I don’t keel over from lack of nutrition.”
“Nonsense! It’s the least I can do!” Thea rejected the notion immediately. Despite their stark differences and her adamant refusal of the obvious truth, they both cared deeply for each other. Old Man James had, after all, rescued her from certain death…
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Her mother had died during childbirth, or rather, before. She had been a citizen of the undercity, so access to medicine or medical professionals was essentially non-existent. When the medical practitioners of the undercity had made it clear to her mother that she would die before she carried Thea to birth, her only choices had been to abort the pregnancy as a whole or take the Cyan Solution.
It had been developed by accident as an off-shoot of a high-end medication for the inner-worlds. This particular medication would never have seen the light of day, if not for the existence of the mid-worlds’ undercities, such as Thea’s home. With essentially no oversight over the pharmaceutical market, no real access to medical professionals, coupled with widespread poverty and desperation, it provided the perfect market for this type of medication.
The Cyan Solution was what is known as a last-resort type medication. Known as such due to their severe side effects mainly being death. Thea didn’t know the actual name of the medication, for it didn’t really matter. Everyone in the undercity simply knew it as the Cyan Solution, for its only other side effect, except for the death of the user, was that it invariably tinted the offspring’s iris colour into a stark cyan shade. As such, it was easy to tell whether someone was born as a result of the Cyan Solution. One simply had to check their eye colour to know. The strong cyan shade, which looked like it nearly glowed from inside, was unmistakable and unique in the known universe.
Most Cyans, how descendants of Cyan Solution users were colloquially called, tried to hide their identity, for they were often ostracised for their lack of mothers. Such is, unfortunately, the nature of human society. When feeling low, the easiest way to get a high is to simply place oneself above somebody else. What easier target than orphans or near-orphans stuck in the everlasting cycle of the undercity? Thea however, took it as a mark of pride.
Her mother had CHOSEN, of her own free will, to preserve Thea’s existence and give her a chance at life, over her own. To Thea, the cyan colour of her iris was a testament to the unmistakable love and trust her mother had bestowed upon her.
Unfortunately for Thea, this outlook did not save her from the harsh realities of life.
During her birth, no father was present. She was born an orphan and given over to the undercity’s orphanages. By law, they were required to provide shelter, food and basic education until the child was at least four years old. That these institutions weren’t exactly the best locale for a child to mature in is to be expected. With little funding from the city itself, they were mostly bankrolled by local gangs or worse. Thea had heard that some orphanages doubled as education centres for slaves. If you were given over to one of those when you were born, you were essentially guaranteed to live your life as a slave!
Luckily for Thea, she had “just” been thrown out onto the streets of the undercity on her 4th birthday.
She had struggled for a couple of days through the alleyways, avoiding people whenever possible, before she collapsed from exhaustion, hunger and thirst; doing desperate things that she refused to think back on, just to survive afterwards.
It ultimately didn't save her as the world had simply been to cruel for her to deal with by herself at that age.
With no other way out, the glass-shard shank she had used as her makeshift weapon had seemed like a good way out.
Before it had come to that, however, Old Man James had found her in an alleyway and decided to save her life.
He had never really explained why he did so for her specifically, as coming upon struggling children, dying teenagers or otherwise broken people among the undercity was an everyday occurrence. But nevertheless, she was eternally grateful for it.
Without him, she would have died more than 10 years ago, guaranteed.
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After clearing out her nutrient pack with her tongue, Thea sat down heavily on her chair with a sigh. “That really hit the spot… I’m so ready for tomorrow!” she declared, raising her fists in the air.
“Haha, yes. You will show them all, I’m certain. Make sure to take adequate breaks though, I don’t want to have to pick you up from the arcade again, 'cause you passed out from exhaustion,” Old Man James chided.
“... it literally happened ONCE. ONCE, Old Man! When are you finally going to let it go!” came the exasperated reply, causing him to chuckle.
“Talking about the inevitable march of time, your birthday is coming up soon. Anything you want this Old Man to get ya?” he probed. It had taken him over half a decade to assure Thea that birthdays weren’t something to be afraid of and that he definitely would not shove Thea out onto the street because she got older. To this day, he still cursed the local orphanages for their behaviour and the irreparable harm they caused on a daily basis, but there was nothing he could do about it.
“Hmmm… let me think… How about one of your UHF contacts? I’m old enough to sign up, I’m certain you can help me out!” she teased him. This was her usual request, every year.
Old Man James wasn’t sure whether to be happy about this or despair.
On one hand, the UHF had been the greatest opportunity of his life.
On the other hand, this opportunity had left him broken, scarred and slowly dying in a backwater planet’s undercity.
He wasn’t sure whether this was something that he should wish for Thea to embrace or stay away from… but either way, there was nothing he could do for her.
“Haha, unfortunately not, missy. You know as well as I do that the UHF does not care about backwater planets like ours. If I could get in contact with my old pals, you think I’d be slowly vegetating on this shithole planet instead of a nice paradise-world?” he added, with a slight bitterness to his voice.
“Alright… I guess… Then I want you to teach me some more about the UHF and your time in the marines! I want to hear the boring stuff too, like how you were taught and what! Teach me the juicy bits too, like how to really kill a guy!” Thea countered with eagerness in her voice.
“I… I am not sure I should be proud or ashamed of how much you want that..?” Old Man James muttered in defeat. “Alright… starting on your birthday we’ll do some more lessons. This Old Man's still got a trick or two up his sleeves, after all!” he conceded as he playfully flexed his, unironically impressive, muscles.
“For now, you should probably head to sleep. You’ve been out till past 10pm again tonight and you will probably need to get in early tomorrow to fix up machines for the monthly reset, otherwise Thomas will find you slacking!” Old Man James chided, finally getting in his bit of parenting, albeit with a much reduced effect as he had initially intended before the chicken pack offering had arrived.
“...Yeeesssss, Old Man. I’m already gooiiing~~,” she dejectedly stated, as she got up from her chair with slumped shoulders, moving towards her bedroom for the night.
----------------------------------------
Hours later, around 0400 local time, James suddenly jerked up from his bed. Ever since his days in the UHF Marines he had been able to pay close attention to his surroundings, even when fast asleep. Something that should not have happened or even been possible, had happened.
He slowly walked towards his locked dresser, unlocked it with his biometric information and retrieved an old, worn data pad from inside.
Activating it, he saw a tiny number “1” blinking on the screen, indicating that he had received a new message, which hadn’t happened in nearly a decade.
Opening the message with apprehension but spurred onwards by his desire to know the answer to his long standing request, he simply stared at the message for hours.
“Tomorrow. This better be worth it. -A”