by James Cox
"Rough crowd," said Carl, once they left the place.
"Idiots," agreed Robin.
The next pub was a lot more relaxed. The three of them matched a small part of the crowd but tourists obviously made up the majority of it. Robin liked the music, light and upbeat and only a little loud.
"Care for a dance," asked Robert, eyes twinkling.
Without waiting for an answer he took her arm, pulled her up and wriggled them into a spot on the dance floor.
"I don't know how to dance," she whispered urgently.
"It's easy," he whispered back, "Just pretend you do!"
Tense and nervous, Robin tried to match her feet to the beat of the music. Robert matched her steps deftly and actually made her steps look decent. Before long she managed to relax. Then the lights dimmed and the music turned slow and soft. He pulled her in close.
"Just relax, lady," he whispered.
This close Robin could look past him and see the other couples on the floor. Not many of them stared but enough to rouse her nerves.
"Shhh," said Robert, "Just let me steer, hon."
His hand against her head, gently guiding her gaze downward. Robin closed her eyes and snuggled in against him. As they danced she could feel the supple muscles rippling beneath his shirt. She took a breath and relaxed...
All the tension Robin felt returned and settled in her stomach! She felt comfortable dancing with Robert, safe with his arms around her. When she opened her eyes she saw he'd guided them off the floor and toward an exit.
"There's a motel next door," he said softly, "Lets get a room, yes?"
She managed a sickly smile. A small trickle of fear soon widened into a stream. Carl was nowhere around and it hit her again just how far from home she really was. She held herself steady by thinking about leaving behind all the people staring at her but that chain of reasoning lead to a more dreadful conclusion.
Robin reached into her pocket and clenched her fist. Her nails bit into her palm but that kept her from shaking. Much. When Robert paid for the room the man behind the counter slid him the keycard with an oily smile. Robin felt his eyes on her all the way to the lift. Robert guided her down the hall and into a room.
"Ready for some fun, lady?"
Robin took a deep breath, held it a moment and took another. Rita Jasworth warned of this kind of paralyzing fear but failed to convey the true measure of it. She heard soft, intimate music as Robert turned on the holovee. When she finally looked at him...
"What?!"
Robin sat down hard, and fortunately onto the bed.
Robert had a pair of terminals, one of them hers, and worked on the room's dissected datajack.
By the time Robin managed to stand up Robert had moved two chairs in front of the terminals and connected them to the modified jack. He winked at her when he finished.
"Oh. This is not the room we just rented. Carl got it for us earlier and brought in our gear." He lit a 'stick and tossed her the pack. "What's wrong, hon?"
"Umm... I thought..." Robin tried hard but the words refused to come out.
"Heaven's flickering flames," he said, giving her his usual non-lust-filled grin, "Robin, luv, my business doesn't mix well with pleasure."
She felt her face flush as all her fear turned to embarrassment.
"Also, just for the record," he continued, "you dance quite well." He checked his chrono and his expression turned serious. "Jack in and get the feel of the net here. We have about an hour and a half to get ready." He handed her a stack of chips. "These are yours. If there's anything else you need now is the time to get it."
Robin powered up her terminal and meshed it with his, just like they practiced.
"Wait a milli," she said, "Why here and why now?"
"This is an advantageous position," said Robert, eyes still on his terminal, "There's a major data trunk junction adjoining this building. I scouted it earlier and, umm... did some work. We'll have a full T-beta pipe and plenty of routes for obfuscation. That's why I picked the pub crawl, too, by the bye."
"Pyronic," said Robin, meaning it.
She felt both a chill and a thrill. Robert planned to do some serious burning, with her beside him. She configured her term accordingly and found the net easily as fast as Robert promised. Before long they both had nice, wide pipes.
"What are we going to hit?" She considered the question carefully and tried to ask it casually. If he'd give her some information...
"Spoof up a few tunnels. Anchor a few spirals and find some bounce sites. Most of the stuff shipped off Echo Bend went through Rugger Mercantile. We have some manifests but all of them ended here, which means either they're here or they had the goods shipped elsewhere."
"Robert... Rugger is one of the largest and oldest companies in the Federation!"
He shrugged. "I'm not saying they are Rugger, just that they use them."
"That's not what I meant! Rugger wrote the spools on data protection and security! If we try to burn them we might as well go to the CA and turn ourselves in."
He gave her a grin so full of mischief she could almost smell it.
"So it's a challenge. Not up for it?"
"Blather. Let me see you make it happen!"
"Slib. Once you get good and hot, anchor a few tunnels to the CA. We are stacking the odds in our favor."
"What? The CA?!"
"Nothing major. Just enough to cut in and draw some dogz when the need arises. Speaking of need I'm kinda parched. Want something to drink?"
"Yeah. Sure." Robin finally lit a 'stick. "Just don't give me the vanish."
By the time he returned Robin had eight solid tunnels anchored to the CA with twice as many more attached to various low-security sites across the net.
Robin shrugged hard, loosening her shoulders. Robert looked at his chrono and gave her a wink.
"Get ready," he said, "I'm starting the initial burn. Keep the big dogz off me and be ready to catch some files. We probably won't have much time."
Robert started slowly. He attached several tunnels to the Rugger site at a low apparent pipe and requested some public information files and catalogs. While they transferred he probed the security very lightly. Even his tendril-touch raised some dogz. Not really bad ones, they warned and probably logged, but they did rouse.
"Polar," he grinned, "CA tunnels ready?"
"Plus-plus. I'm logged as visitor and looking up crime stats. Want me to burn in?"
"No, but get it hot. It won't be long."
Even as he spoke Rugger flashed red and severed all connections.
"Heh! Spike it in, Robin. Now!"
Robin fired a throbbing needle against the CA wall and followed it with a swarm of virmites, both specially crafted against the CA. When the dogz swarmed she launched a codefog with fractal flames waiting for it to fail.
Robert slid down her tunnels, past the CA security and into a particular area. He roused a few dogz but Robin blasted them easily. Then, amazingly, Robert slid into the heart of the Rugger site.
"How fortunate," he said blandly, "It seems they have a high-security incident at their main office. Shall we ride along?"
Faster than Robin could see Robert grabbed files and threw them her way. No sooner did one transfer terminate than he had another three or four starting. One of them had security because the dogz swarmed again. Robin peppered the area with rotten fish and followed them with a mirror-backlash. That many active modules slowed her box but more so the Rugger area and certainly the CA.
"What... exactly... are we... looking for," asked Robin between catching files and stomping dogz.
"Flight data and shipment manifests from Echo Bend. No older than three months."
"Phase down," she said, "Cover me!"
Ignoring Robert she hopped into the backup policies. Rugger used the standard package they developed and sold so Robin had little difficulty locating what she wanted.
"What..."
"Transaction logs," she interrupted, "I can't be too
choosy but they're not particularly... Feces! Umm, not particularly hot."
She heard Robert saying something but she ignored it. The CA tunnels finally started to heat up and he had his hands full dealing with it. Her terminal beeped and she automatically slapped in a blank dataspool and continued grabbing files.
"Robin! They're on us! CA dispatched to our location. We'd best be gone soon. How much longer?"
"Almost... Got it!"
The CA site already had several probes hot and targeted. Robin triggered her hottest fractal flames and collapsed her tunnels. When she powered down Robert had done likewise and gathered everything they brought to the room.
"We should leave now, lady!"
As the door closed Robin thought she saw blue lights flashing outside the windows. Thoughts of the CA catching them chilled her. Robert must have known because he grabbed her arm and dragged her to the lift. He smiled at her puzzlement as it started upward. As soon as the door opened he led her to a room.
"This, my dear, is the room you and I just rented."
With that said he stowed their gear, messed up the bedclothes, pulled off his shirt and mussed his hair. When Robin looked out the window she saw a street full of CA hovers and more officers than she wanted to count. She started to say something to Robert but when she opened her mouth he ran something over her lips. Then he kissed her!
"What..."
"Shhh," he hissed. He tilted back his head and turned his neck toward her. "Kiss me! Here, here and here."
Too shocked to object Robin did as he asked. Her lips left a mark!
"Lipstick," she asked.
"Not really your color, dear, but it'll do."
Robin heard noise in the hallway, then knocking followed by demanding voices.
"Take off your shoes," whispered Robert, "then your shirt, then climb into the bed."
No sooner had she complied than someone pounded on the door!
"Central Authority! Open this door, NOW!"
Robert took out a small tube and spritzed his mouth. Then he walked to the door and opened it.
"Yesh," he said mushily.
"Central Authority, perp. Move!"
Four CA officers elbowed past Robert and into the room. Robin didn't have to fake any terror as two of them started toward her. She sat up and pulled up the sheets to cover herself. Though she wore no shirt she still had on her pants and socks. One of the officers holocast her while another dumped her purse and began poking through it. One of the others looked around the room.
"Wh-whash the problem, shir," slurred Robert. He staggered back into the room supporting himself against the wall.
"When did you arrive here, perp?"
"Uhh..." Robert's brow furrowed with concentration. "Day before yeshterday, shir."
"How long have you been in this room, perp," demanded the officer, not hiding his irritation.
"N-nearly th-three hours, sir," squeaked Robin, heart racing.
"That checks." The lady with the holocaster checked her datapad.
The four officers left without bothering to close the door. Robert did so, dropping his drunken manor as he walked back.
"What's wrong, hon?"
"I... I..." Robin began to shake. She wilted against the headboard, not even concerned that the sheet slipped down.
Robert pulled a bottle out of his bag and poured her a shot. The liquor burned her mouth, scorched her throat and exploded in her stomach. When she finally managed to take a breath the searing heat worked its way down her arms and legs, warming and tingling her fingers and toes.
"Zogry's Solar Rain," said Robert, tossing off a shot, "Prime slosh, truth?"
"I've had better."
"Well have some more!"
Robin's second shot wasn't nearly as bad and she rather enjoyed the third.
"Now," said Robert, handing Robin her shirt, "It is, I think, time to leave."
"I concur," said Robin. When she leaned down to grab her shoes she found gravity offset at an angle from where it should be. She wobbled when she stood but Robert put his arm around her and steadied her, despite the room shifting.
Back in the pub Robin started for the dance floor but Robert guided her to a table. He ordered drinks and she spilled some of hers before she managed to take a sip. She laughed at that and at Robert's smile. When he rose and took her arm she put the other one around him just for stability. More than a few people stared at that but it didn't bother her. She tried to muster the concentration to figure out why but ended up laughing at her own reasoning. They boarded a hover back to their hotel and it felt good to sit down. It made several stops as people boarded or left but Robin ignored them.
Back in their hotel room Robert handed her a small capsule. She swallowed it dry and started to unbutton her shirt.
"You need me to kish you again," she smiled.
"Nak, hon. We're cryo. Come in here, though."
"Shure, shweetheart," said Robin as she walked into the fresher, "We taking a shower?"
Robin felt a sudden flush and started sweating profusely. Then the room spun and Robert held her shoulders as she heaved over the toilet. When she emptied herself completely, finally, the room stopped spinning and her head pounded.
***
Back in the main room Robert poured a glass of something and put a small tablet beside it.
"What the hades just happened," demanded Robin. Her head throbbed and sweat soaked her clothes. "Don't think I'm drinking that, either!"
"It's juice and a headache tablet," he said, "The sooner you rehydrate yourself the better you'll feel.
"As to what happened, we just finished burning the data we needed. You kept us around longer than I'd planned and I hope the data was worth it. After we were traced, I'm sure you remember that part, we changed rooms and the CA put in an appearance. You did a six-sigmas excellent job acting terrified and I do believe I managed a credible drunk."
Robin set aside the empty glass and stared at him evenly.
"After this fact I gave you some very potent liquor. Not Zogry's finest but it did its job. After you relaxed sufficiently we returned to the club for a drink then returned here. Pub crawl finished, fun had and ample witnesses to the fact."
Robin considered this carefully. "You could have told me."
"Truth, lady, but you might not have been as convincing." Then, deadly serious, "Robin, what we did tonight was a non-event against some of the things Carl and I do regularly. It's still tame against what we may have to do soon. Think on that."
"I'm going to take a shower," she said, "I'll decide afterward whether or not to be mad at you."
When Robin finished her shower Robert had soda and nibblers.
"Well," he asked.
"I don't like being drunk. I don't like not knowing the plan. I plus-plus do not like the CA looking at me like a common criminal."
"Fair coin," he said.
Before Robert could continue the door opened and Carl walked in. His face had no color and he had a pronounced limp.
"Holy... What the hades happened," asked Robert, totally serious now.
"Complications," replied Carl through clenched teeth. He shed his jacket and settled gingerly on his bed.
When Carl removed his coat Robin saw scorch marks on his shirt and pants along with several wetly shining patches. Robert grabbed one of his bags.
"Why didn't you call for evac," demanded Robert.
"Your ball, your score."
"Can... Can I help?" Robin moved to Carl's side.
He regarded her evenly. "Cut off my pants leg. It's stuck."
Robert handed her a pair of scissors and she started cutting. This close she could smell the charred flesh. When she had the fabric cut and tried to peel it away it resisted. She tried a gentle tug and it didn't move.
"Just pull slowly," said Carl as Robert finished cutting away his shirt.
Robin did so, gritting her teeth at the pain it must have cost Carl. Underneath she discovered not one wound but three: a deep pu
ncture, another large burned patch and one that looked like something hot ripped away the flesh. She forced herself not to look at the cloth she dropped on the floor. Robert handed her a pair of tubes.
"Antiseptic and burn gel," he said, "Leave the deep one for me."
Her hand shook as she applied the unguents. When she looked up Carl wore his normal expression with only a slight squint to his eyes.
"Thanks," said Carl.
Robin backed away to let Robert work. By the way he moved he'd done this before; she tried not to think on it. He soon had most of Carl's garments on the floor. Wordlessly Robin gathered the scraps and took them to the fresher. Then she washed her hands. Then she washed them again. Then again, then again. A pale reflection looked back at her from the mirror.
"Hey, lady. You all right?"
"Polar."
"No you're not, but you will be soon." He handed her a large tablet. "Draw a tub of hot water, drop in the clothes and this tablet. Don't touch the water afterward."
The tablet fizzed and bubbled in the hot water and soon the clothes, blood and all, started to dissolve. Once they were gone Robin returned to the main room. Robert had an impressive array of instruments, tubes and sprays laid out beside Carl, who now reclined in his bed.
"I'm going to be at this a while," said Robert, "Why don't you wait on the balcony."
Robin nodded, grabbed her juice, 'sticks and terminal and left the room.
***
"Well," asked Ferrel softly, after activating his garble.
"Well is not how things went," replied Micah, "Their security was way too hot. They knew or strongly suspected something would happen. That or they routinely deal with expert intruders."
"Did they make you?"
"I don't think so. I took lots of precautions on the way here. That's how I picked up a couple of those holes."
"Flames! You think they were tipped?"
"I don't know but I suspect it pretty strongly. I got in easy and got access fast. It wasn't until you two showed up that things turned thermal." Micah stayed silent a moment. "So how did your end go?"
***
