by Amanda Rose
As the papers were being passed out, Koto finally came into the conference room. “Sorry I’m late everyone, father,” he bowed, then took his seat. “What have a missed?” he asked looking to Tamiko as she passed about the papers. She slid him one and said nothing, though strongly desired to reprimand him for tardiness. A few moments later everyone had received and read over their copy of documented facts. “It seems,” she started, and attention was immediately given to Tamiko as she stood at the front of the room, “that the small tribe clan Quan has been ignoring its taxes. We usually use tax collection funds for building, or repairing Generators. We need to fully rebuild the grid eleven generator, as well as part of the office building, after the most recent terrorist attacks,” She pulled pictures to be passed about of the aftermath annihilated of the generator and damaged office facility.
“We are currently pulling funding from our own saving bonds for the repairs. The construction will begin immediately, there are no issues holding us back time wise. However, the issue of Quan’s neglect has now been brought to our attention,” she summarized “Great. Thank you Tamiko,” the present signalled for her to be seated. “Now everyone. How are we to collect? We want every departments idea.”
“How about we send them an overdue notice?” A young woman sitting next to one of the scientists suggested, which stirred a flurry of responses from around the room, “No.” “How could we just do that?” “There’ll be more delays!” protested voices round the room. The woman went red and sank back behind her chestnut locks of hair. “How about removing the dome?” another voice came, though no one saw who said it. “Then we are still lacking out money.” “No good! No good!” more protesting encircled the table.
A broad-shouldered gentleman leaned forward, his deep booming voice grasped the room. “May I, president?” he asked. “Yes, General Yoshida, please speak,” Genji replied. Yoshida stood and leaned his fists on the table, his suit was highly decorated with medals, “As I see it we need to take ‘em by force. We go in and straight to deal with their tribe leader. If they don’t give the payments we confiscate what valuable items we can and sell ‘em to make up for losses.” Yoshida sat down. Talk spread amongst the table. “No argument here,” one voice agreed.
“If I may,” an elder man, with a lab coat on stood up. “Direct action is necessary. Though due to their negligence, should we not enforce overdue fines as well? Charge them interest to warn other domed cities that tax payers are not to slack off in the future?” the pale man looked around. There was a general murmur of agreement. “I say we should also include a collection fee for the deployment of our troops in order to collect the overdue payments,” Koto added. “Give our boys a nice bonus as the end of the month, Eh? Ha, ha!” he chuckled.
“Everyone in favour of the proposed, say aye,” Genjo asked shuffling his papers into order. A mutual consensus about the room was quickly met. “General Yoshida, when can you spare your troops?” Genjo inquired. “We can leave immediately,” Yoshida said confidently. “Good, good. Be sure to file a report upon your return,” Genji instructed. The general nodded, “Yes sir.” “Meeting adjourned,” Genjo dismissed them all and left promptly.
Koto assisted Tamiko up from her seat, “That went well,” he smiled. “Thank goodness. This company can’t lose face, we’d suffer an intolerable rebellion,” Tamiko stated sweeping a few loose hairs back behind her ear. He escorted her down the hall, “So my dear, may I have you for the evening tonight?” he asked. They’d reached the elevator and awaited it. Before Tamiko could answer he went on, “I’ve reserved a spot at a certain little…” he waved a little card in front of her face. Tamiko looked up and her eyes seemed to sparkle, “Oh, my favourite bistro! Thank you, Koto. Come and get me from my office after work then?” she queried. He nodded.
The elevator door opened, and they were about to step on when the scientist from the meeting ran up to them, “I’m sorry to interrupt. Koto, you’re needed.” Koto rolled his eyes and turned to look at the man. “Can you not see I’m busy?” he sharply growled. “Yes sir but, we need you immediately,” he insisted. “I see. Tamiko, I’ll see you later then,” he kissed her cheek and then followed the scientist down the hallway with haste.
As the elevator doors shut Tamiko felt like she was a few seconds behind lost in thought. What was so important? she wondered. The man’s eyes were intense with fear, it must’ve been quite serious. She was curious, Koto often was called away down to the research laboratories, but he’d never told her his reasons. Though he was the manager of the regional areas, why such devotion to the Torusan’s research department over the other facilities? Tamiko sighed and just let it go, the elevator had reached her floor.
Slowly the afternoon slipped away, all was well in accounting. Tamiko finished her work and tidying up her things for the night. Koto was on time nearly to the second, as usual. Knock, knock! “Hello, my dear,” he addressed her in his usual smooth toned manner. He opened the door and leaned against it; he looked smart in his dark suit. His intense nature intrigued Tamiko to no end. Tamiko bounced up from her seat and to his side with a sexy sway, and his hungry eyes watched her intently.
They ripped down the street in Koto’s red sports car, the engine roaring. It gleamed in the bright light of the sinking sun, and sparkled under the streetlights. Koto dodged dangerously between cars, speeding down the streets. Tamiko was swept away by his adventurous nature, and dangerous appeal. How could life be any better? Dating the second to the head of the C.D.F.P.? What is it about him that sets my soul on fire? She wondered as she watched him drive. Blonde hair cascading down over his face, around his electric eyes.
They arrived in the heart of grid one’s industrial section within minutes. He offered her a hand from the car and took her down the welcoming red carpet into the restaurant. The chandelier in the centre of the establishment twinkled and glowed in the candlelight. The lighting in general was dim, soft, and very romantic, and Koto reserved them the best table within the restaurant them. Koto had money to burn, his father, Genjo, spoiled him rotten. Both his father and he had more wealth then either could spend in their lifetimes.
They settled in at the table, but before conversation commenced he pulled a fair-sized leather box out from his briefcase which he’d brought in. “Here you are my dear,” he said pushing it over to her. He reclined in his chair and sipped on some water that was provided by their hostess. Tamiko quickly finished shimmying her coat off of her shoulders and onto the chair. Her smile beamed as she attended to the box, it gave a gentle creek as she pulled it open. “Oh, Koto… it’s beautiful!” she exclaimed, pulling a diamond necklace from the box. “Nothing but the best for you, Tamiko,” he told her placing his cup down.
The white gold was embedded with at least a hundred tiny diamonds that twinkled and shimmered in the light. Koto stood up and circled around the table. Taking the necklace, he draped it around her neck and latched it on. She got up, threw her arms about him and gave him a kiss. “Shall we dance, my dear?” he pulled his head back slightly as some gentle dinner music began to play. Tamiko was swooning, as she followed him over to the dance floor. It seemed life was nothing but good in the upper class.
After two bottles of the chateau’s finest wine, Tamiko finally recalled a question that edged at her mind earlier. Without hesitation she brought the subject up, “Koto, what was the urgency with that Dr. Fumiaki Abe earlier today? Some breakthrough on the psychological floor?” Koto’s smile went dim, and he took a minute before he spoke. Tamiko sat there wondering about the delay. Finally, he gathered his thoughts, “Tamiko… if I tell you, there’s no going back.” Tamiko was taken aback, “What are you talking about?” she asked, confused. He sighed, “I can only tell you if you are going to be going all the way with the C.D.F.P. Are you?” he questioned. Tamiko nodded, this was her life, she had worked hard to get into the C.D.F.P. and live the good life at the top. There was no way was she giving it up now.
“Alright then,” he loo
ked her in the eyes, with a slightly sinister appeal, “we can’t speak here about it. Better yet, you should see for yourself,” he concluded and took his coat, throwing a small bag of gold on the table. Tamiko scurried to get her things together, her intrigue was growing. What could be so secret? She couldn’t even fathom the possible answer, so she stopped trying to fit the pieces of the puzzle together.
Despite the heavy drinking over dinner Koto drove relatively well, their conversation and where they were headed sobered him up fast. A small smirk lay across his face the entire car ride. Nothing much was said, though Koto stated as they’d entered the vehicle, “Oh my dear, you aren’t gonna believe this,” he said followed by a devilish little laugh, which soon faded, “too bad you couldn’t have seen the entire experiment.” The anticipation grew. Tamiko was too drunk to conceive of the possible consequences associated with taking on company secrets.
It seemed to take an eternity, in Tamiko’s mind, to reach the C.D.F.P. official building. Tamiko was surprised when they got into the elevation that they were going downwards. “Aren’t the labs…” she was about to say, then realised that this wasn’t just some wacky science project. They went down several sub-levels to the point of which Tamiko never knew ever existed within the building. They stepped out of the elevator. Tamiko was getting nervous; the light was unpleasantly sterile as they marched down the hall and entered through a large titanium door.
The room was a blinding white. Bewildered scientists eyed down Tamiko as she came in, they were clearly worried by her presence there. The room had several giant test tube type machines built in. Several dead, mutated organisms floated within a liquid inside of the tubes. Tamiko took on her workplace demeanour, “What is all this? How come this floor doesn’t exist?” she asked firmly. “This is the C.D.F.P. Inc.’s hidden research laboratory. It isn’t known because the Western Empire doesn’t support it. We also wouldn’t want enemies of the Empire, or C.D.F.P., to get hold of any of the technology we have developed down here,” Koto explained.
Tamiko nodded slowly trying to make sense of everything in her head. “What are these?” she tapped on the glass window of a test tube. “Part of the emergency earlier today,” he signalled for her to walk with him. He went over to a metal table and flipped open a book, pictures, diagrams and scientific jargon filled the pages. He stopped about two thirds of the way through the book. The page was entitled, “Human Experimentation” her eyes darted from the page to Koto.
An empire of such power- let me merge- let me show my worth.
Chapter 9: Into the Freezer
Months had passed, and it was a chilling autumn in Quan, Suako had still not come back to meet up with them as she’d said she would. Vince faithfully awaited her arrival, he refused to leave without her. The others had left him there while they went on minor expeditions to a few petty communities within the Quan region. They returned one cool day under an orange moon.
“Yo, Vince!” Kato called as they walked back into Quan toward the misty swamp. Vince looked up at the tired party as they neared him, and he stood up to greet them, though a grim expression was upon his face. “Still no sign of Suako?” Mei asked, she though knew the answer. “No… How was the trip?” Vince asked solemnly. Jenko dropped his luggage and stretched out his neck, “just glad to have some air in my lungs,” he said breathing deeply. “We’ll tell you over some fried rice,” Mack said patting Vince on the back, “we’ll drop off our stuff and head over right away. We haven’t eaten anything since early this morning.”
After they’d put their gear away they all headed over to the food tent. They all ordered as quickly as possible, they we’re tired, cold, and hungry from the trip, and the hot food would warm them up. They sipped some gently brewed teas as they awaited their dinner. The moons broke out from behind the clouds in the sky, and the bright orange of the harvest moon glowed, beaming off of the swamps murky surface.
“So… there’s nothing new?” Vince asked slightly shocked, since they had toured for several weeks. “Unfortunately, no. There are just small groups of people that have no real feelings either way towards the company. They didn’t have any useful information. I should’ve guessed nothing would’ve changed,” Jenko sighed. Everyone knew that they’d never planed on going to those places, they sympathised with Vince, but now time was slipping away.
They told Vince briefly of the people they’d encountered, and what the settlements were like, but he could barely keep his concentration. He gazed longingly to the southern horizon line. Their voices were slowly drowned out by his thoughts. He wanted Suako back with him, he wanted to have his companion back. His frustration and worry welled up within him till he was just about ready to burst.
“Vince… Vince?” Mei shook his arm. Vince suddenly snapped back into reality, “Oh, uh, sorry,” he said shaking his head. “Vince…” Mack sighed, he couldn’t stall their progression further, “Vince, we have to go on. We ‘ave to leave tomorrow. The planet, the people… everything’s dying. It’s getting worse out there,” Mack said. Vince shook his head, he’d expected as much but dreaded hearing it, “I can’t go,” he simply said. “I’m going to go down to Kagawa. If Suako went there, then I will follow. I have to know why she hasn’t come back… I was going to leave before but I… if she was dead I… I didn’t want to know. But now I need to know, one way or... or the other,” he choked out. They all fully understood.
“We wouldn’t have it any other way,” Mei smiled reassuringly. Mack nodded. “It’s alright, we need find out. We’re planning to head to the ruins of the old Ryoko,” Mack told him. “I’ll give you a sketch of my map to take with you. This land is much bigger then it seems,” Jenko offered. Vince smiled, “thanks everyone. I know deep down she’s all right… but I have to find her.”
They spent the evening trying to forget about the worldly woes weighted upon them. They celebrated as best they could with the Quan people this one last time. This refuge had been a blessing, a safe haven for them, in a violent world. Kairu spent the night with Okichi, she loved hearing stories of the world. The two could relate, both being chief children and isolated for it. They sat off to the side, content with just each others company for the evening. The young lady wore her tribal jewellery, and a white gown that her dark brown hair graced over. Kairu spoke quietly to her, hiding his words from eavesdropping ears.
As hard as everyone tried, no one could really forget anything, their mission ahead was tough, and vital. They drank berry wines and enjoyed the evening, disguising what lay below the surface of their exteriors. The night passed slowly, and Vince didn’t sleep at all that night, he spent the night writing in his journal, he penned down everything on his mind. He also sketched everybody within the pages to remind him of there ever present beings within his life.
A thick mist covered the cold earth as the sun took its time rising on the eastern horizon, and a brilliant red stretched across the sky. The team awoke, and slowly dressed and prepared to leave, stocking up on as much rice and non-perishable goods as they could carry. Mei stepped out from the cabin they occupied to get some fresh air. As she tied a sweater about her waist she looked up at the blazing red sky. Kato stepped out from behind her, and her low toned words caught his attention, “Red sky in the morning, travellers warning…” He patted her on the shoulder and kissed his on the cheek, “It’ll be ok.”
They all gathered at the food tent one last time for their final meal in Quan. “I really hope we’ll get to come back here to celebrate…” Jenko said grimly. Kairu looked off toward Okichi’s tent, as well to look at Elder Otojiro’s sitting plainly beside it. “Yo, c’mon ya’ll, we be comin’ back ‘er,” Kato firmly looked about the table. “He’s right. I don’t want all these melodramatics, the planets held on this long, and it’s gonna go on a lot longer after we get rid of the C.D.F.P,” Mack insisted. “He’s right. Once Vince gets Suako they’ll be hot on our trail,” Kairu optimistically said. Though Kairu was young and fresh to the outer world, Vince h
oped he was right.
“Mmm, I think I’ll ‘ave to live just to eat some more of their soups ‘ere again,” Kato announced. A weak smile reached Mei’s face, and the others gave slight jest of laughter. Then a revered silence settled upon all of them, of which Jenko finally broke, “Here Vince,” Jenko pulled a rolled paper tied with a braid of dried tall grass, “I made you a copy of the map. It’s about a four-day journey to the Kagawa region. There isn’t any oxygen there, so enjoy your last few breaths for a while here,” he said passing him the map. Vince took the map and respectfully bowed his head.
Breakfast was rather dull otherwise, filled with tension. No one knew what lay ahead of them, but they new something was going to happen. They felt it, and they also knew just how badly the earth had degraded in just the past few months. Life was too intense, and they wished for a different reality. To wake from the seeming nightmare of which the world was devastated in, but they never woke up from the nightmare of their lives.
The travellers set off promptly after eating, and they parted ways at the oxygen dome entrance. “G’ luck man,” Kato gave Vince a bear hug, “Bring ‘er back.” “You take care Vince.” Mei said as she threw her pack over her back. The others said their goodbyes. “I’ll come back. We’ll find you,” Vince said, and with that he turned and left.
After a few minutes of prepping themselves the others prepared to embark on the long week of travel they themselves had ahead of themselves. “Kairu!” a voice called from behind, and Kairu spun about. “Kairu don’t go!” Okichi called out in vain, tears streaming down her face. She ran up and flung her arms about Kairu, “you need to finish story telling,” she cried. “I must go,” he said patting her head. She refused to let him go. “He’ll come back, I promise,” Mack assured her. She finally let him go, “come back to tell me more stories,” she insisted. Kairu nodded and brushed a tear from her plush cheek, and they shared a smile. With that they turned and took their leave.
