He met Mandy after practice at a small midtown restaurant touting authentic pre-collapse Italian cuisine. To Owen that meant spaghetti. But it smelled much better than anything he got out of a Mega Mart frozen meal. The interior had a cozy feel to it. Booths with dark red leather were set against walls. A statue of a fat man in an apron was next to the door. Playful music played on overhead speakers.

  “The fuck happened to you?” Mandy asked when he joined her in the booth. She wasn’t in her peacekeeper gear. Instead she was dressed like any other mid city woman. White blouse with a sweater and blue jeans. Her boots were slim and came up to half calf. They looked like they were good for running in. Her hair was down and touched her shoulders.

  “I had a martial arts fight on top of the old slaughterball stadium,” Owen said. He shrugged. “I lost.” He iced the bruises again and he could see out of his swollen eye. Couch Wilson wasn’t happy with his appearance and had him do five hundred sprawls, followed by two miles of bear crawls, as punishment. The thought of meeting with Mandy helped him through the pain.

  “You have a lot of those lately?”

  “Oh yea,” Owen said. “Had a sword fight in New Asia with a crime boss too. My life is real interesting all of a sudden.”

  “Glad to see you still have that weirdo sense of humor.” She snickered. “I was worried you turned into a meathead.” Mandy smiled. She was older for sure, but he saw the Mandy he knew in that smile. “I ordered for you if that’s okay. Their baked ziti is to die for.”

  “What kind of animal is ziti?”

  “Don’t worry about it. How’s life? Give me the real story. Not the screen show version.”

  “How’s life?” Owen was confused. “Is that really what you want to know? What did you invite me here for?”

  “To talk. Hang. Be in each other’s presence.” Mandy laughed. “What? Is that weird?”

  “Yes,” Owen said. He felt his low life instincts returning. Nobody wanted something for nothing. Owen waited for Mandy’s offer. Was she corrupt? Did she know Owen was part of the Liberation Brigade? No, that was a ridiculous thought. He’d be in cuffs already if she knew.

  “It is a little weird.” Mandy took a sip of her RAMPAGE COLA. “I didn’t realize how much I missed you until the other night. You were the only person I gave a shit about at the care facility and I left you to the wolves. I’m sorry Owen. I should’ve found you after I was stable.” She frowned.

  “Don’t be sorry. Sorry is for assholes.” Owen crossed his arms. “I figured it out.”

  “Really? By going to fight clubs?”

  “Sure,” Owen said.

  “Better than what I ended up doing.” Mandy blinked hard and grinned. He knew her fake smile well.

  “Why this spot?” Owen asked. He heard someone shouting in the kitchen.

  “Been here with Rachel a couple times.” Mandy smiled wide when a waitress brought out their food. “You’re going to love it. It’s way better than the vacuum sealed shit they used to serve us.”

  “Dirt was better than vacufood.” Owen dug in and Mandy was one hundred percent correct. Owen could eat baked ziti for the rest of his life and never get tired of it. The mix of flavors overwhelmed him. He could die happy.

  “I lied,” Owen said. “I didn’t have it figured out.”

  “Yeah. I knew.”

  “Honestly, Mandy. I was just surviving, but I didn’t know it. This fucking peacekeeper gave me a fine and it changed everything.”

  “Owen,” Mandy said.

  “But it was the best thing that happened to me, I think. I didn’t realize how fucked my life was until that bitch decided to kick me while I was down. I didn’t even know I was down. I wouldn’t have found Sensei Dan if not for her. You know what? I wish she was here. I’d fucking thank her!” A couple patrons of the restaurant were staring at Owen. “My bad, everyone. Got excited.”

  “I’m sorry, Owen,” Mandy said. “Relax. I didn’t know things were so bad.”

  “Me either. Bitch didn’t care if I ended up in Black Hill. Just like all the rest of the PKs and the High Lifers.” Owen laughed. “You know what a CTD is?”

  “No.” Mandy played with her food. She wouldn’t look him in the eyes. “Is it a toy or something?”

  “No. Cranial Transfer Device. It’s a training tool. Pre-collapse tech. I found it at my old job. Thought it might be worth some money so I fixed it up and tried it out.” Owen tapped the side of his head. “It did something to my brain and now I can see and hear a karate teacher from the past. His name is Dan Hardknuckle. He’s the one teaching me. He’s my sensei.”

  “Owen, are you okay?” Mandy asked. “Do you need to see a doctor?”

  “No. It sounds crazy right?” Owen shook his head. “I’m joking.” He faked a laugh.

  “I need to tell you something,” Mandy said. She set her fork down and clasped her hands. “It was me.”

  “It was you what?” Owen ate a meatball and smiled.

  “I was covering for foot patrol in the low city. I’m the one who gave you the fines.” Mandy took a breath. Owen squinted. “I’m sorry. I didn’t recognize you at first. You looked so different. Bad. It’s been tearing me up for a long time.”

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “No. That can’t be right.”

  “I’m telling you the truth. You had some groceries. You were looking at, what was it?” Mandy looked up as she thought. “Bikes! Right? You stepped over the ad line.”

  “You gave me those fines? You would’ve sent me to a labor penitentiary for crossing a fucking line?” Owen blinked hard. He stared at Mandy. He could see the shame plain on her face. She could’ve ended his life. “And you didn’t even know if I managed to pay it off. Did you?”

  “No.” Mandy shook her head. “Not until I saw you at the station that night. I brought you here to tell you. I’m sorry, Owen.”

  Owen got up and walked away. He needed air. Mandy. It was Mandy! He spent a long time thinking she was dead. She wasn’t dead. She was ruining lives with a corporate brand on her chest. She was everything Owen fought against. His best friend in the entire world and she tried to dry fuck him. Sorry was for assholes.

  He made his way through the mid town foot traffic. He stared at the neatly painted ad lines that separated citizens from those fucking screens. Ads for everything a citizen could ever want lined every inch of available space. Holographic displays showed products in all their three dimensional glory. It was all a ploy to rip credits away from citizens. Someone should’ve burned the whole city to the ground. At least the light would be natural.

  “Owen!” Mandy chased after him. “You really stick me with the bill?”

  “Cheaper than what you stuck me with!” He shouted back, his words full of venom. He dodged a delivery drone on six wheels.

  Owen went down an alley where ad light faded away. Old neon signage for soda bars and karaoke lounges cast him in pink and purple. A man in an inflatable bear suit tried to hand him a flier for a club.

  “Don’t be like that,” Mandy said. “I was just doing my job.” Like that made it okay. Mandy caught up with him further down the alley. “Don’t just walk away. I’m saying I’m sorry.”

  “Telling me not to walk away? That’s funny coming from you.” Mandy frowned and her eye twitched. “I survived just fine without you. Get the fuck out of my life PK.”

  “You asshole,” Mandy uttered. “You’re a fucking prick. Is this who you are now?”

  “Better a prick than a City Seven corporate owned cunt,” Owen growled at her. Mandy took a step back and reached for the non-existent ECD at her side. “Yeah. That’s who you are now. Bent over for the same people that never gave a shit about us. Why the fuck are you still here?”

  “Back up, Owen,” Mandy said. She was using her best peacekeeper voice. “I will put you down.” He heard the tremor in her speech. Saw the doubt in her eyes. She was afraid and he liked it. The same way he liked seeing fear on the faces of the Red Demons and the junkies he beat down. The pain from his fight with Tuck retreated as adrenaline entered his veins. He knew he could rip her apart and she couldn’t do a thing to stop him. Hardknuckle gave that to him. There wasn’t a PK in the city he feared.

  “Owen,” Sensei Dan said. “Is this who you want to be?” He stood beside Owen. “She isn’t your enemy. That’s Mandy. Your friend.”

  “Some kind of friend. Who needs one like that?” Owen turned away from her. “Lose my info,” Owen said over his shoulder. “I don’t want to see you again.” He didn’t bother looking back. Mandy could go fuck herself. He didn’t need a PK in his life. It might’ve been better if she just OD’d in a gutter somewhere. Would’ve saved him the beatings and near death encounters he had since he met Sensei Dan. “Fuck!”

  “We’re not done talking,” Mandy said as she threw her arms around Owen from behind. His arms were pinned to his side. The fuck was she doing? Owen stepped behind her and tossed her down. She was way lighter than he expected. The elbow of her sweater ripped on the pavement and Owen saw blood.

  “What are you doing?” Owen asked as Mandy stared wide eyed at her elbow. “Was that a hug?”

  “Oh, you asshole.” Mandy jumped to her feet and threw a punch at him. Owen slipped it and pushed her. Mandy stumbled into a bunch of trashcans beside a dumpster. Garbage juice soaked into her nice mid towner clothes. The ad light made the liquid shimmer on her skin. Owen smirked. Served her right.

  “That was a shitty punch. That what they teach PKs?” He went to help her up. His world turned to fire. Pepper spray from a concealed can stuck to his face and eyes. He wiped his sleeve across his face. Couldn't get the gel off. “What the fuck?”

  “That’s what they teach us!” Mandy shouted. She rammed Owen with her shoulder and he smacked a wall. A few men standing outside a soda bar laughed. She kicked him in the side and he caught her leg. He tackled her and quickly moved past her legs. She hit him with another spurt of the spray in his mouth. He couldn’t breathe and he couldn’t see.

  “Get back!” Mandy kicked and punched. Owen grabbed her hand with the pepper spray and twisted her wrist until she dropped it.

  “Owen,” Dan said sternly. “Stop it!”

  “Don’t tell me what to do!” he managed to shout through the spray.

  Mandy kicked Owen off and he heard glass break as he fell into garbage. He tackled her again. He had her. This time he moved past her legs and sat full mount on her chest. He grabbed her by the throat. Her nails dug into his forearm. He barely felt it. The painkillers held strong.

  “You’re a real tough guy,” Dan said. “It’s real easy to beat on your friends. Let’s see what it looks like.”

  His eyes opened wide. He saw Dan’s fingers at the edge of his vision. His head turned against his will as Dan made him look at a shattered mirror in the garbage. Owen saw himself in multiple shards. His eyes were blood shot. His face contorted into a scowl. In neon light he looked deranged. Just like the rest of the scum lurking around the dark corners of City Seven looking for easy prey. He wasn’t a Hardknuckle warrior. He was a cockroach with his hand on Mandy’s throat. And he wanted to choke the life out of her for what she did to him. It made him sick.

  Owen let Mandy go and slumped against a wall. His entire face burned and he couldn’t see a thing. He couldn’t breathe. He wasn’t sure what to do next as he slid down the wall and sat. He heard Mandy walk away. No one stopped to check on him. The City Seven machine kept moving and it didn’t give a shit about Owen.

  “Dan?” Owen said. He spit the pepper spray out. “Sensei?” He got no reply. “Sensei Hardknuckle!”

  “Here,” Mandy said. He felt something cool hit his cheek. “It’s water. Get your eyes open and pour it in. Only thing that’ll help.” She came back.

  Owen did what she said and washed the pepper flakes out of his eyes. It burned even worse somehow but he got his vision back slowly. Mandy sat down next to him.

  “Sorry,” Owen said. He tried to mean it.

  “Me too.” Mandy took a drink of her water. “Does it burn?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Good. Now we’re even for all that shit you just said.” Mandy grabbed his knee. “You’ll be okay. It just burns for a while.”

  “I know. It’s not the first time.” Owen laughed. It hurt as bad as the first time. “Why’d you come back?”

  “Because you’re right. I’m a corporate owned cunt.” She sighed. “I didn’t need to give you those fines. But I did. And I’m sorry. If that’s not good enough I don’t know what to tell you. I missed you. Don’t just want to let you walk away.”

  “I missed you too,” Owen said. He tried to find the right words. “It hurt when you left without saying anything. I was alone for a long time. I didn’t know how alone. Is your neck okay?”

  “I’ve had worse.” Mandy nodded and wiped her eyes. “Let’s stop hurting each other, okay.” Mandy pulled Owen close and hugged him.

  “You smell like garbage.”

  “Shut up. You’re ruining the moment.”

  Owen leaned into Mandy as she held him. It was like when he got a black eye in the care facility. Like when it was the two of them against the world. She was always there for him back then. She was the first person to offer him any comfort for the death of his parents. Before Owen had Sensei Dan he had Mandy. He was an idiot to forget it. He was an even bigger idiot to almost throw her away.