Tales of the Courier-Up close and Personal
Hemmed in and no way out. The tension builds as the seconds tick by. He’s still grinning as the item on his belt makes a final, audible beep. Now the ride is his. Jamming the car into reverse and flooring the accelerator, he guides the ride backwards, towards the still closing, steel security gate. The right rear contacts the gate as the ride blows past.
Turning the wheel hard, he power slides the ride into a spin. He hears protest from the empty seat beside him, but the contract is breached. So who cares. Flooring the accelerator pedal, he grips the wheel as the ride leaps forward with extreme force. The road ahead is empty, and allows fast passage towards the city center.
There are followers now, they have just hit the road behind him. Way back there. Time to see what this ride is made of, and he brakes hard turning towards Timblerain’s government district. Flooring the accelerator again, he punches the m-com link as the ride screams forward. Knowing that Cheeky is waiting for this call is cool. She had been communicating with him, surreptitiously, with an old school trick. The ancient Morse code technique.
“1courier, that was cutting it a bit close, don’t you think?” There is a pause, and Cheeky continues without waiting for further response. “Your current position is thirty minutes away from our rendezvous. I am assuming you are aware of the location?”
He grins again, she holds him accountable. He likes that.
The rendezvous is a place on Timblerain only couriers know of, it’s not on any map. The empty seat beside him has been strangely quiet after the initial protest tirade. Maybe the disembodied voice jumped ship a couple of miles ago, he hopes so, as he pushes the ride for all it’s worth. Moving towards the rendezvous with Cheeky, fast as hell.
It is night again, on this world. There are three moons, but only one is visible in this night. It shines an ethereal green as it makes it’s way leisurely, across the night sky. Checking the backtrail reveals no pursuers at this point. He wonders what the deal is, he’s fast but not that fast. As he thinks on this new development, he’s reminded of that connection that he may have missed.
It could wait until that heart to heart with Cheeky. Then there would be answers. Until then, drive. Fast.
The enclave. Every world has one, and they’re for couriers. Couriers know about them, use them, when needed. Sometimes it’s for rest, other times it’s for seclusion. Occasionally a courier may even be on the run, that’s when an enclave makes all the difference. An enclave is inaccessible to any but couriers. It is a rule, and he doesn’t make the rules, he just plays by them. Sometimes.
The m-com link fires again as the road carries him along, “10 minutes 1courier, and that cloak technique is working brilliantly. It will be interesting to learn how you are managing that.” Yes, he thinks, it will be interesting, but the explanation won’t be from him. He doesn’t know. Getting to the enclave for a regroup was the only thing on his plate that mattered to him now.
As if on cue, the empty seat beside him issues another dark warning. “You will not get away with this, 1courier, enclaves are not as secretive and hidden as couriers think they are, this one is no exception.” Spooky all silence again, and he’s glad, dark warnings were boring. It wasn’t that an enclave was hidden that made it secure. It was more unknown, than hidden, and this made it secure.
They are coming to the outskirts of Timblerain again, traveling through the outer urban areas away from the city center. He knows the enclave is minutes away, and so is Cheeky. This is the only part of this day that has gone to plan, and he’s anxious to get there. Disembodied voices not withstanding. That part was fast becoming a sticking point, and Cheeky was his best hope for figuring this shit out.
Minutes later, he brings the ride to a standstill just outside of a rundown and abandoned warehouse district. Time left this place alone long ago. The timeworn structures move off in every direction, as he crawls the ride along hidden alleyways. Looking for the red and blue mark of the courier. He continues down each side street until he spots the mark on the side of a large sealed structure, several stories high.
The m-com link blips and he knows Cheeky has unlocked the door. Further down the side of the structure a large bay door begins to open. He angles the ride that way, and nudges it forward. The interior of the structure belies it’s outer appearance as the ride enters the building. The place is more of a research and command center than an old warehouse. Groups of couriers are gathered in various areas throughout the structure. He angles the ride towards a particular and familiar form standing with two service robots.
As the ride nears the familiar form, the empty seat beside him begins to issue warnings again. He thought this would happen, when the containment generator the bots were holding, became evident. What he hadn’t anticipated was the sheer power a disembodied voice could have as the passenger door explodes outward and lands fifty feet away, slamming against the side of the structure.
He has a few moments to think, there’s going to be a party after all, before the driver door explodes outward, and he is seized and ejected. Then all hell breaks loose.
