Imaginary Lovers

  Bucket and Glitch are in a quiet place on the lower docks, each wearing a long tan synth denim overcoat with a hood. At a glance they could easily be mistaken as a couple of dockworkers sneaking a break, after all, who else would be hanging out there with the lingering smell of sewage and brine? Edgar is perched far above looking down on the building they figured was the prison building. The building is in the middle of the cavern with the water far below.

  So what do you see Edgar?? Bucket says.

  They're in a small building, six men and two women outside. Edgar says.

  Are they armed?

  Yes, they have arms.

  No, I mean do they have guns?

  Two men have big guns.

  Bucket is still working out the kinks of gathering intel through the mind of a raven. Lenny did say he's about as smart as a 6 year old, with more training he can probably build Edgar's knowledge base. “Glitch, what do we have for micro cams? I need to see what Edgar is looking at.”

  Ok Edgar, come back. Bucket says.

  Edgar silently dives straight down to the water, turning at the last second then flies straight to Bucket as he holds out his arm, seamlessly morphing into a hand they join.

  “Back to the room Glitch.” Bucket says. There is an explosion by the bay door control room. Bucket smiles; Tales and the Colonel have used the lockout codes and covered up who used the panel last with a small explosion. Until someone replaces the bay door panels the bay doors are sealed.

  The OP is being planned in Bucket's personal quarters. Glitch is working on some last minute adjustment to the cameras in the Cavern and scripts to erase any recordings from the cams facing the Unlinked slums above, Tales is set, spending her time fixing Buckets door lock.

  “Why is she here again?” The Colonel says, glaring at Emmy who is just quietly sitting there.

  Bucket just ignores the remark. “Tales, are you sure you can make the climb? It's a 40 meter drop to the water if you slip.”

  “Yeah,” She says, kneeling down she's at the door replacing the lock, “I won't slip. Frick they really messed up your door.” She stands, closing it she locks it and gives it a shake. “It’ll hold.”

  “Thank you.” Emmy says.

  Tales gives Bucket a glance, then Emmy, then shrugs. “Welcome.” She says.

  Bucket looks at the Colonel as he speaks, “Emmy, I need you to be in the room where we're taking them.” The Colonel goes to speak, Bucket holds up his hand, “We're short and Emmy can open a damn door. This is my OP. We need her and I trust her.”

  “Very well, why don't we give her my codes while we're at it?” The Colonel says.

  “Is the motor solid Glitch?” Bucket says.

  “I think so, I do tech, mechanical isn't my forte.”

  “Ok, that'll have to do. The micro EMP scramblers Edgar placed by the surveillance cameras, will give us a 2 minute window. They also might not work, Glitch has a backup plan if they don’t. We need to save it for the drop.” Bucket takes a revolver out of his desk drawer, flipping the chamber open then closing it, before handing it to Emmy, ”If anyone other than us enters the room you know what to do.” She assertively nods. “Last chance to back out.” He looks at her, he can see the resolve in her eyes that it's a waste of time asking her.

  “Ready to go to the room.” She says.

  “Are you wearing that?” The Colonel asks. Emmy is wearing her usual black dress that covers all by her hands and head.

  “Covered in pitch black, seems perfect for where she'll be. Let's head out.” Bucket says.

  Bucket and Emmy walk along the lower docks, behind the unclaimed storage crates to the back docks under the upper dock that's 10 meters above. The dock ends, he's in the spot the Colonel told him. He can see the platform with his eye, about half a meter below the surface. “Let me go first.” He takes a leap of faith, walking through the knee high water toward the wall he stops. Reaching forward his hand goes through the stone wall hologram. He steps through, there is a 2 m square room, a light flickers to life as he steps in. Entering the code the door opens with a creak.

  He doubles back to get Emmy, she's hiking up her dress, preparing to step down.

  “It'll just be a mess.” He turns his back to her, “I'll carry you.” Without a word she climbs on his back and carries her across. She tenses as they start to walk through the hologram wall. They climb the narrow, damp stone staircase, the passageway feels like mold, up to the top they enter a room.

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  The room looks like a defunct command center, cracked clear coverings over most of the equipment, some covered with canvas tarps. They remove the coverings, Bucket throws the master power switch on the side and it lights up. The tech is old style CRT monitors, built for durability not for fancy holodisplays.

  “Emmy,” He turns to her, “These people, the woman is a really bad person. She will try to say anything to get you to sympathize with her. And, her and I had relations a while back.” He says, feeling on edge telling her.

  She looks at him with a puzzled look, “You didn't save yourself for me?” She says with a hurt look. But she can't maintain the serious look for long, she smiles then laughs, “Sorry, I couldn't help it.”

  “Smart ass...” he laughs and shakes his head, “So, wait by the lower door, when you hear the knock let us in.”

  “Ok.” She says with a salute.

  He turns to leave, then stops, and turns back, “Emmy, I just wanted to say...”

  She reaches out, placing her finger on his lips, “Shh. When the time is right.”

  “How am I supposed to know when the time is right?”

  She gently puts her hand on his shoulder, “You'll know. And if it's not the right time, I'll let you know.” She says with a little heel hop, then turns to the room, humming a chipper tune.

  Bucket is set up, high above in a communication tower on the side of the Cavern. The micro waves from the tower are messing with his eye, his vision is periodically covered with a bit of digital snow, but the script keeps filtering it like a car wiper clearing the snow.

  Looking out through the sonic pulse gun he sees the guards in front of the building; there are only 4 of them now. Blue markers highlight each of his team members. He sees the Colonel walking through the Unlinked area, Glitch in a small black zodiac in the harbour and Tales, almost in position, climbing under the gangway far above.

  “You good Tales?” He asks her on the radio.

  “This fricken sucks Bucket. Yeah, I'm good.” She responds. She presses on under the gangways like a kid on monkey bars.

  “You sure?” He says.

  “Stop asking me every fricken…” She cuts out, losing her grip she falls. Flailing her arms she manages to land face first in one of the troughs used to move sewage. She climbs up the rope that's used to hold the makeshift sewage removal. “Stop fricken distracting me!”

  She gets to the spot and stops.

  “Ok, I think I have the right angle but if the sonic pulse clips Tales be ready to pick her up from the water Glitch. Colonel, start the distraction, Glitch, get the zodiac in place.” Bucket calls.

  The Colonel sets off the remote smoke canisters Bucket had placed around the settlement earlier, she drops a couple of flares in front of some buildings on her way out of the settlement. Bucket takes aim with the sonic pulse weapon, the guards in front of the holding cells fall to their knees, he can see all the people in the cell area fall as well.

  “Clear Tales.” Bucket calls. She pulls herself up, entering the holding area. He can see the outlines of the people inside the cell room, Tales zip ties and gags all of them. The fire alarm sounds, smoke filling the Cavern, citizens are running around, trying to find the source of the smoke and assumed fire.

  The small charge goes off in the cell, wooden debris falls to the water below. Nadine, Wizbang and Tales appear, going down a zip line at a high rate. The line stops abruptly 5 m from the water. Tales cuts the line with her knife, falling to the water. Tales and Glitch struggle to keep the incapacitated captives' heads above water and get them in the zodiac. With a jerk the zodiac is pulled towards the docks at a high rate of speed by a rope attached to an electric motor.

  The zodiac is pulled all the way to the secret room, they start unloading. Bucket looks back to the settlement; a lone figure and Bucket spot one another at the same time. It's Leech; he slumps his shoulder in defeat, extending his middle finger. Bucket waves before blasting Leech with the sonic pulse gun. His smile continues into a hearty chuckle as his eye reports his target was incapacitated, and that he shit himself.

  Bucket lights up a smoke, in the Colonels secret command room they all look at Nadine and Wizbang. They are bound with hoods over their heads, their ears covered, blocking out all sound.

  “Ok, I need to do this on my own.” Bucket says. The team all talk at once, making their case for why they should be there and discussing what he'll do, “Enough!” They all stop talking. “Emmy, there is no way in hell you'll be here for this, I need everyone else to stand guard up top. Tales, the bay doors will likely be forced open soon, be ready to go so they don't go tearing this place apart to look for you. Now everyone, out.”

  They all stream out of the room, Bucket says quietly to the Colonel, “Watch Glitch closely, he may try to intervene. I still have some mecha-nanos directing my feelings towards her. Glitch had stronger feelings.” She nods and leaves.

  He takes the hood off Nadine, removing the gag and sound protection. He's lost in her beauty the moment he sees her face. But it's not real feelings. He shakes his head, reminding himself it's not real. How he feels about Emmy is real.

  “Hi Bucket, is this some sort of kink you have?” She says with a wink.

  He shakes his head, “I know who you are, I know what you did to my mind. Your people want you back.” She smiles at the notion, “but you won't be taking intel back to them.”

  “Oh, I've already done that.” She says with a smug smile.

  “See, I think you're full of shit. I think you wouldn't risk an upload and that you have no way to do so through all the rock, buried subway lines and metal crap between here and up top.” He says, removing a revolver from the desk drawer.

  “Well, you have no way of knowing, do you?” She says.

  “True. In which case, I have no use for you.” He says, pointing the revolver at her. Her smug smile falters, her lip quivers. He stands there, gun pointed, motionless.

  Tears well in her eyes, “Well do it if you're going to.”

  “But you're a mere wetware host, right?” He says, the fear in her eyes becomes more desperate.

  “W-w-we could go away, you know how you feel for me. Does it matter why you feel that way for me? I could up the dosage, you could love me more than life itself, a love stronger than any bond.” She nods her head. Part of him considers it, all the pain in his life gone, replaced by sheer love. He pulls the hammer back on the revolver, she lets out a short high pitched scream. “Please, please don't. I-I, actually am Petra, I'm a clone. But I'm real, I have all her memories, I'm not a machine. Please, please, please I don't want to die. I am part of her and she's part of me, I've been alive for 6 years, walking about, living in the real world among you all.”

  “And you tried to kill me...” He levels the gun.

  She screams.

  He pulls the trigger.