Brave New Girls: Tales of Girls and Gadgets

by Kate Moretti

  Taiana worked for my parents back when even I hadn’t seen through their lies. She was head of the tech department, and I was her student before I was even accepted into Vidya. My parents had no idea she might betray them someday, or they’d never have let her be my mentor. Back when she worked for Ngai Corp, she’d already had certain opinions that clashed with those of my parents. Later, I’d learned she was a rebel spy sent to extract information. She gracefully “retired,” and even I hadn’t known about her true identity until I’d run away. At least she’d prevented me getting punished for hanging out with her in the company.

  I was her project, she told me, and she made sure her knowledge was passed on to me when she was teaching me coding all those years ago, deploying another mine in my parents’ palace. Before I realized what she was doing, she gave me immense wealth, knowledge I later used to steal money from my parents to help my own escape, as well as to stop their vile work. I hoped I could find her again. She was a master of disappearance.

  After clearing up the bank accounts and sending money to new ones I opened for myself by hacking foreign banks, I began to sort out my data. I cleaned up virtual storage and moved everything I had on old and future plans to new accounts. I had multiple machines for multiple projects, so if one machine was unlocked, they never got the whole package. Launching a new portable jammer Iffie made for me in school, I transferred the information into virtual storage. I had a few lined up in case I had to run, and launching any of them would immediately alert the co-handler, Taiana. She’d know I was on the run if she hadn’t figured it out already. She’d tell the rest.

  The machine told me the data transfer would take 167 minutes and 24 seconds.

  Lastly, I had to sever my connections to other humans as soon as possible before they paid for being affiliated with me in any way. I could not be responsible for more bad fortune than they’d already endured. I left a message for Taiana in one of her codes. By the time I finished, my head was burning. The stress wasn’t doing me much good, and I hadn’t eaten in hours. Deciding on some beef jerky, I ventured to the back of the vehicle, where I accidentally kicked the dye packaging I’d left on the floor.

  My hair! I’d left the dye on far longer than I was meant to. I could only hope my hair didn’t fall out when I took off the cap. Yanking it up, I nearly ripped my forehead away with it. Carefully removing it from my head, I grabbed the mirror. The hair was still covered in goo, and I’d have to waste even more water to wash it all off, but I could already see the results.

  The brown dye was supposed to gently lighten my hair to a chestnut color—whatever a chestnut was—but it looked nothing like the packaging. It was orange. Absolutely terrible. It made me look like my head was going up in flames, which felt like it could be true—my hair was hot to the touch, and my scalp tingled. I worked to wash off the remaining foam then shook my head dry like a dog. Towels were a luxury I could not afford.

  I had to remind myself that I had chosen this path. I’d left behind a comfortable life in a great school with good friends, but I was fighting for the truth and to expose the wrongs that were driving the new society to the same ends the Earth dwellers had suffered. It was up to people like me to set the others on the right path again—to put it humbly, of course.

  Thinking about friends again made me think of Iffie. She had been my best friend ever since I’d met her at Vidya. She’d come from another planet to Avani to educate herself further, and we’d hit it off right away. We had shared a room and a few computer projects. We’d teamed up in math and physics, and we’d even helped Sati and Miyu with their weapons. We’d made toys, and I had tricked her into helping me make a jammer, which I’d later reproduced for my dealings. She never knew what it was really about.

  Just as my computer told me the transfer was done, I was able to see the northeast coast of Naiwa on the horizon. The army patrols were visible just below the atmosphere border, which meant I’d have to circle around and land from the west. They were obviously expecting me, which made me worry I hadn’t killed off their entire network. They could have had a backup, keeping tabs on me without me even knowing. That was a worrisome thought.

  Breaking into the atmosphere, my ship shuddered lightly, and I started to feel the weight of everything around me. My ship was accommodated to imitate the inhabited planets’ conditions—it supplied enough oxygen and imitated gravity but never to the full extent, especially with a crappy ship like mine. Breaking the barrier made me feel like I’d swallowed a stone, but that may have been fear of the people waiting for me.

  This side of the city appeared clear, so I landed by the biggest store complex they had. It was a monstrosity of a place, housing shops, restaurants, cinemas, and all kinds of other venues to distract people from reality. It also had an enormous parking garage spanning levels up into the air as well as down into the ground. I chose the top level, which made for an easy departure if I was chased again. But I had no idea how they could still be on my trail after all my precautions. I was becoming sloppy again, and I could not afford any more slip-ups. I decided to not use my own machinery to find Taiana but rather do it on public computers. I’d be harder to track, and nobody—hopefully—would expect me to be in such a public place as a mall.

  Still, I decided to factor in the possibility of getting caught, so I emptied my ship once more and deserted it on the lot.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  The terminals in the mall were great for anyone who had to browse the web for a moment. They provided anonymity, and that was exactly what I was looking for. If I bought a drink at the nearby stall, I didn’t even have to pay for the terminal. A free code was supplied on the cup’s lid. I was pretty thirsty after the jerky, so I treated myself to a drink composed of fruits, vegetables, and all the vitamins a girl could need in a day. I paid with cash—money that was still virtual but untraceable. And that money was actually mine, what little I had left from back when I’d had the sense to store away some of my parents’ wealth. Back then, I got pocket money for good grades, and what I hadn’t spent on new technology, I’d saved on this battered cash card.

  Slurping the odd greenish drink that tasted good, despite its repulsive appearance, I dodged a security guard and sat at one of the free terminals as far away from anyone else as possible. With a few taps on the keyboard, I hacked the machine and got myself unfettered access to the virtual world that was otherwise limited on public machines.

  I didn’t bother finding myself. That would waste precious time. Instead, I focused my search on the one person I had to find—Taiana. I counted on the fact that she was too old to leave this city and travel to another.

  It had been months since I’d last needed her help, so she was definitely not living downtown anymore. She was a genius like that, always hiding in plain sight, right under everyone’s noses. I logged on to the underground network and began to ask around. I got a bunch of different answers. None were helpful until I got a personal message:

  Never_Broken: Long time no see, Charna.

  Charna! That was her old nickname for me. It was definitely Taiana. My heart leaped, and I quickly sent her a message back. She responded with an address not far from the mall. I deleted all the information, cleared the history, logged off, and hurried back to the ship. I managed to leave undetected.

  Finding Taiana’s new dwelling wasn’t hard. She lived near a nightclub downtown, not far from the police station, in fact. She always kept such curious houses, and I often felt she was playing with fate. I parked by the club, packed up everything I had once again, and abandoned the ship one last time, already missing it. Even though I’d had it for only a few hours, we’d been through a lot together.

  I hurried to Taiana’s home, entered through the back, and nearly colored in my new pants when a large dog stopped my progress. He was enormous and so silent, he seemed to have materialized there. He didn’t bark or threaten, jus
t bared his huge teeth and dared me to move a muscle. For a while, we just started at one another. Then he stepped forward and smelled me. He must have detected my dread because he licked his snout as if he were preparing for a good meal. But before I could decide whether to scream or run, the dog ran away and into the house through a small opening in the door. Moments later, Taiana appeared with a flashlight.

  “Well, come on. We haven’t got all night,” she mumbled and went back inside.

  I followed reluctantly, not sure I wanted to be in a closed space with that animal. Just as I passed through the door, I met the dog again. He slipped back out and resumed a position just out of sight by a bush.

  “Isn’t he gorgeous?” asked Taiana. She smiled like a mother gazing upon her child.

  “Marvelous,” I mumbled.

  “Come here, sweetie! How are you?” Taiana said and hugged me. I always felt closer to her than I did to my parents.

  “Okay, I guess,” I mumbled into her wide chest.

  “Not in trouble again, are you?” she asked with that curious accent of hers. She stared down at me over her crooked, eagle-like nose with light, sparkling eyes.

  “Sort of,” I said with a weak smile, and she laughed a deep, hearty laugh. She let me go and showed me to a seat in her kitchen. She poured me a cup of tea and sat across from me.

  “So, you need papers?” she asked.

  I nodded while sipping the hot liquid. It unfroze my fingers, which had become rigid in the late night air. “As soon as possible. I’m on the run.”

  “Again?” she asked, exasperated.

  “What do you mean again? It doesn’t happen that often!”

  “Often enough,” she said, smiling. “What was it this time?”

  I was a little ashamed to tell her. I explained how I had disabled my defenses to get at this big company that worked closely with my parents’ firm and how later on, I’d fried my ship in one last desperate attempt to flee. Taiana shook her head but did not comment.

  “What happens now?” she asked.

  “I need papers to go to another planet. I don’t think they expect I’d run that far, but I can’t stay here. Every city is prepared and waiting for me. And I can’t stay in Space forever.”

  Taiana nodded. “Okay. I can whip something up by morning. Want to sleep here?”

  “If I can. I abandoned my ship, but maybe I can still use it in the morning.”

  “I doubt it’ll be much use to you then,” said a voice from the hallway. I turned around and leapt from my chair. There stood my mother, in all her terrifying glory.

  I looked at Taiana, who was completely unfazed. “I’m sorry, Charna. It had to be this way,” was all she said.

  I turned to run through the back door, but the dog was there again. What was going on? How had my mother found me? Why would Taiana do this to me? I wanted to believe this wasn’t her choice, that she was somehow forced into it. They had to have something on her, or else she’d never betray me. I needed to believe that.

  Tears appeared at the edges of my eyes, but I refused to let them rain. I steeled myself and blinked the moisture away before turning back to my mother.

  “Mother,” I said calmly even though, inside, I raged at the betrayal.

  “Robin,” she responded coldly. I wasn’t her daughter anymore. I was a threat to be eliminated. “Please, join us,” she said and motioned down the hallway. I knew what to expect: armed guards that belonged to my family and an escort to the company vehicle that would take me home. I wasn’t yet sure whether it was good that my mother had found me before the army. For now, I had no choice but to follow.

  As I’d expected, I was met by armed men and women in my parents’ company uniform and ushered to a flyer outside. It would take us to the capital where my parents’ company stood, but what would happen there, nobody knew. Just before we boarded the ship, my mother turned to Taiana.

  “The deal has been fulfilled on my part also,” she said curtly. Taiana nodded and disappeared back inside. My heart sank even deeper as I sat down in a plush chair.

  CHAPTER SIX

  We arrived at my parents’ company in much less time than it had taken me to escape to Naiwa. I was led to the top of the tower, where my parents not only had offices, but also the penthouse apartment I used to occupy above them. I was given fresh clothing and ordered to shower. I was not allowed to present myself before my father dirty, sweaty, and with that terrible hairdo that made my mother wince every time she looked at me.

  My father wasn’t as bad as my mother was. He wasn’t as strict as she was. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t firm or demanding—and often unreasonable. Standing before him now, I hardly recognized him. He had aged considerably, more than just the year and a half I’d been gone. His hair had started to gray at his ears, and his face was lined. Some of that was probably my fault. My mother showed no signs of aging, which was probably proof she had a deal with the devil. She had a business to run, and some unruly brat would not spoil that for her. Her own words.

  “Welcome home, Daughter,” said my father in a serious tone.

  My mom clicked her tongue at that, probably to remind him I was disowned and, therefore, had no family. That had most likely been her idea in the first place.

  “I’m not home, Father,” I said coldly. I had not “come home.” I’d been dragged there by the dragon that stood next to my father.

  “Very well.” He motioned to a seat I refused to take. With a deep sigh, he lowered himself into his office chair. My mother stood behind him and stared down at me as though she were looking at a pile of dung. “You are here today to be offered a deal,” he started, but I jumped in.

  “Like the one you offered to Taiana? You think I’ll just jump on board like she did?”

  Father let it slide without comment while my mother ground her teeth.

  “How much did you pay her?”

  “That is none of your business,” my mother hissed.

  “You are here today,” my father continued as if nothing had happened, “to choose. Your mother wanted to turn you in, but I am willing to give you another chance. We reached an agreement, and we have a proposition.”

  My mother gripped the back of his chair so tightly, her knuckles whitened.

  “I don’t accept. Turn me in.”

  Mother grinned triumphantly as my father closed his eyes and sighed deeply.

  “Even if you get another chance? Another chance to work for this company. And the life you wanted before all this.”

  I shook my head. That was all history. “I don’t want another chance.”

  “Robin, honey,” pleaded my father. My mother snorted.

  “She said no!” The door of my father’s office nearly flew off its hinges and hit the wall. In strode my baby sister, Tacey, followed by my classmates, the girls I hadn’t seen in months. “Taiana says hello,” said Tacey from the head of the group.

  I could have cried from pure joy—unlike my parents, it seemed. Their pride and joy, and next in line to inherit the company, Tacey was just eleven and already messing up. Just like me. I almost laughed. I was sure this was not how they had envisioned their offspring would behave. Taiana had ruined us completely. I wondered when she’d recruited Tacey, and how the heck she’d managed to involve the girls I was trying to save.

  I smiled at them. Iffie looked wild. Her hair was longer than I remembered, and she bore a few scratches. Sati and Miyu were there, too. The physics geniuses had probably never expected any physical exertions in their operations. Valencia came, as well, probably after revenge on my parents. How had Taiana gotten them on board? Something bad must have happened to them to turn against the people who would ensure their futures.

  “What’s with the hair, dork?” said Iffie, a Taser trained on my parents.

 
I couldn’t help but laugh; I was so happy to see her.

  “Iphigenia,” I said and opened my arms to hug her.

  “Call me that again, and I’ll leave you here,” she grumbled before crashing into me and enveloping me in a tight hug.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “Rescuing you. Saving the world. The usual,” she said and motioned to my parents. “You mind?”

  I shook my head. “Not at all.” While Iffie waited, Tacey tied them up. Valencia lifted my father’s computer off his desk and went back to the door.

  “This should make things easier,” remarked Iffie while my parents pleaded with Tacey. “For some.” I was still in shock and awe over my little sister’s performance.

  “How?” I asked after a while.

  “She’s been supplying us with intel since last year. Looks like you had some impact after all,” said Sati with a smile. “Taiana has organized it all. She’s had a trap waiting for you for a few months now.”

  “Yet she managed to get you together.” I smiled widely.

  “You coming or what?” asked Iffie.

  “Where?” I asked.

  “We’ll show these suckers to never ever play us again,” she said with a glint in her eyes before stepping over crumpled guards by the door. I ran after her, out of this hellhole and into the new world.