Garam skated rhythmically through Rokkaku Dai heights, knowing exactly where he was going. He could have gone blindfolded if he had wanted to. He headed for the sewers, skating around an old man on a walking stick, after all why should he deliberate disrupt the elderly when he didn't have to? Without thinking, he knocked the statue resurrected by Goji over, as he did every time.
He had no idea who kept putting it back up, especially now that the old lunatic was out of office, to say the least.
He jumped off into the sewers, not bothering to grind down, but landed on the edge and ground towards the sewer entrance.
The instant he stepped inside it was like the world had changed. The warmth of the outside was replaced by the muggy consistency of the sewers. It was sort of like walking into a barn full of flatulent cows busily producing methane. He ground across the 'bridge' he had constructed long ago before finding the GGs, and turned several corners to find the centre of the sewers. From there he turned right automatically, and coasted into the Fortified Residential Zone.
He ground up stairs and steps until he looked out onto the second level of the Zone, where the base of the giant of metal rested. He didn't grind that beast though, instead opted for more exercise, and skated the corkscrew stairs up a level.
"Ah! He touched my bum!" someone shouted as he skated around a corner to the next stairs.
"Did not," he muttered, "Wouldn't have said that if I was Jazz!" He ground downwards on the next stairs, leaping off part way down, tricking as he soared through the air to land skilfully on the next stairs and spiral up wards onto the next level.
Garam didn't actually know how the people who had to live here actually managed to get onto all the various levels. He didn't know how they managed to get into their houses either. It was just one of the many little mysteries in life that he felt no compulsion to solve any more.
He skated along the side of a wall, weaving in and out of the few people there. Civilians were much more acceptable that men in cloaks and armed with guns. I wonder why some of them wore teddy bear outfits, he mused. He skated up the straight stairs just ahead of him, taking him left, jumping near the end to reach the next section of stairs. Open space reigned before him, looking down upon stacks of houses like badly constructed termite mounds. He could also see the deserted playground, really just a selection of swings, hobble horses, dummies that went 'poof' when you knocked them over, and a sand pit.
Only, today it wasn't deserted.
There was someone there, he could see them swinging slowly on one of the swings.
Curiosity killed the cat, but Garam felt himself to be in no way similar to that particular feline.
He started to grind the next stairs down, but leapt off, tricking down to keep him balance and landed right in front of her person on the swing.
He could see her properly now; she wasn't a child, although her body was quite small. Her teal hair was tied back in a single ponytail. She wore black sport pants with two white stripes down either side, and a white t-shirt that hid the lines of her body, which was a change from what she used to wear. Over it all she had a leather jacket that squeaked when she moved, proving that it wasn't an expensive one.
She looked up at him, Melanie's face unchanged from the days it had been worn as part of Rapid 99, but it was more noticeable now that the rest of her body wasn't. It was actually quite pretty, not that anyone had ever cared.
"Hey, what are you doing mooching around here?" said Garam, not being hostile, just concernedly.
"Why do you want to know?" she snapped.
"Just-" A cold piece of metal twined around Garam's wrists, pulling them behind his body as another one slid under his neck. He struggled automatically, but whatever the metal thing was, it didn't relent.
"Lay off NT," said Melanie tiredly. "The bloody GG isn't here to fight. They adopt rouge rudies into their ranks the whole time, don't you? Never bother defending your territory, you just annex the usurpers." There was a bitter tone in her voice. However, the metal binding Garam backed off and let go. Garam glanced behind him to see a noise tank sit down slowly, lights flashing slowly on its chest.
"What's a lone 99er and a noise tank doing here?" asked Garam, turning back to Melanie. "I thought your gang were always together in a group of three. And I thought noise tanks always went around in numbers with several zero's behind them."
"How many NT's do you think are left," sneered Melanie, "Your kind killed the lot of them, even if they are machine. Would you kill a cat for chasing a bird? You GGs probably would. Not only that, but you'd take away the tree for the bird, so it had nowhere to go anyway, and that's why it was vulnerable to the kitty."
"Noise tanks were ruining the streets, they were a danger, that's why they were dealt with," said Garam calmly.
"Never thought of going for where their orders were being sent from first, did you?" she sneered. The NT beeped. Garam jumped, obviously not as calm as he thought.
"He wont's go at you again," said Melanie calmly, "He's running out of power."
"What do you mean?"
"He punctured his battery pack," explained the ex 99er tiredly. "It's like slitting your wrists I suppose. The last NT is going to shut down. He would have just switched off, but his circuits were bashed around too. It's a shame." Garam glanced behind him at the still robot. Aside from a few flashing lights, although less than there had originally been, there was no sign that it was still active.
"To be the last," murmured Melanie, obviously thinking of something else.
"You didn't answer why you're here," remembered Garam, changing the conversation. Melanie shrugged.
"What's it to you?"
"I'm always looking out for people. It's my duty as a Christian," explained Garam, daring her to make something of it.
"As far away from 99th street as possible," she explained, eventually, "And I promised him that I'd stay with him until he's well and truly gone," she gestured to the noise tank, now with only two lights on. A thought occurred to Garam.
"I bet I can get him fixed."
"I don't think you should."
"Why not? He'll be as good as new. Roboy can handle it."
"He didn't want to be fixed," insisted Melanie. "It was his sepuku."
"You're kidding me," dismissed Garam, "I'll take him back to Roboy. He'll talk sense into the old computer. You'll see." The final lights of the Noise Tank switched off. Garam hefted the machine and placed it over his shoulders. He was strong enough to do it, after ages of hauling stuff around the sewers.
"Hey, what's your name by the way?" he remembered to ask.
"Melanie."
"I'm Garam."
"I know. You're a GG. The whole underground knows thanks to the radio."
"Hey, listen, will you be here tomorrow?"
"I have no intention of going anywhere," said Melanie bluntly.
"Great."
He had no idea who kept putting it back up, especially now that the old lunatic was out of office, to say the least.
He jumped off into the sewers, not bothering to grind down, but landed on the edge and ground towards the sewer entrance.
The instant he stepped inside it was like the world had changed. The warmth of the outside was replaced by the muggy consistency of the sewers. It was sort of like walking into a barn full of flatulent cows busily producing methane. He ground across the 'bridge' he had constructed long ago before finding the GGs, and turned several corners to find the centre of the sewers. From there he turned right automatically, and coasted into the Fortified Residential Zone.
He ground up stairs and steps until he looked out onto the second level of the Zone, where the base of the giant of metal rested. He didn't grind that beast though, instead opted for more exercise, and skated the corkscrew stairs up a level.
"Ah! He touched my bum!" someone shouted as he skated around a corner to the next stairs.
"Did not," he muttered, "Wouldn't have said that if I was Jazz!" He ground downwards on the next stairs, leaping off part way down, tricking as he soared through the air to land skilfully on the next stairs and spiral up wards onto the next level.
Garam didn't actually know how the people who had to live here actually managed to get onto all the various levels. He didn't know how they managed to get into their houses either. It was just one of the many little mysteries in life that he felt no compulsion to solve any more.
He skated along the side of a wall, weaving in and out of the few people there. Civilians were much more acceptable that men in cloaks and armed with guns. I wonder why some of them wore teddy bear outfits, he mused. He skated up the straight stairs just ahead of him, taking him left, jumping near the end to reach the next section of stairs. Open space reigned before him, looking down upon stacks of houses like badly constructed termite mounds. He could also see the deserted playground, really just a selection of swings, hobble horses, dummies that went 'poof' when you knocked them over, and a sand pit.
Only, today it wasn't deserted.
There was someone there, he could see them swinging slowly on one of the swings.
Curiosity killed the cat, but Garam felt himself to be in no way similar to that particular feline.
He started to grind the next stairs down, but leapt off, tricking down to keep him balance and landed right in front of her person on the swing.
He could see her properly now; she wasn't a child, although her body was quite small. Her teal hair was tied back in a single ponytail. She wore black sport pants with two white stripes down either side, and a white t-shirt that hid the lines of her body, which was a change from what she used to wear. Over it all she had a leather jacket that squeaked when she moved, proving that it wasn't an expensive one.
She looked up at him, Melanie's face unchanged from the days it had been worn as part of Rapid 99, but it was more noticeable now that the rest of her body wasn't. It was actually quite pretty, not that anyone had ever cared.
"Hey, what are you doing mooching around here?" said Garam, not being hostile, just concernedly.
"Why do you want to know?" she snapped.
"Just-" A cold piece of metal twined around Garam's wrists, pulling them behind his body as another one slid under his neck. He struggled automatically, but whatever the metal thing was, it didn't relent.
"Lay off NT," said Melanie tiredly. "The bloody GG isn't here to fight. They adopt rouge rudies into their ranks the whole time, don't you? Never bother defending your territory, you just annex the usurpers." There was a bitter tone in her voice. However, the metal binding Garam backed off and let go. Garam glanced behind him to see a noise tank sit down slowly, lights flashing slowly on its chest.
"What's a lone 99er and a noise tank doing here?" asked Garam, turning back to Melanie. "I thought your gang were always together in a group of three. And I thought noise tanks always went around in numbers with several zero's behind them."
"How many NT's do you think are left," sneered Melanie, "Your kind killed the lot of them, even if they are machine. Would you kill a cat for chasing a bird? You GGs probably would. Not only that, but you'd take away the tree for the bird, so it had nowhere to go anyway, and that's why it was vulnerable to the kitty."
"Noise tanks were ruining the streets, they were a danger, that's why they were dealt with," said Garam calmly.
"Never thought of going for where their orders were being sent from first, did you?" she sneered. The NT beeped. Garam jumped, obviously not as calm as he thought.
"He wont's go at you again," said Melanie calmly, "He's running out of power."
"What do you mean?"
"He punctured his battery pack," explained the ex 99er tiredly. "It's like slitting your wrists I suppose. The last NT is going to shut down. He would have just switched off, but his circuits were bashed around too. It's a shame." Garam glanced behind him at the still robot. Aside from a few flashing lights, although less than there had originally been, there was no sign that it was still active.
"To be the last," murmured Melanie, obviously thinking of something else.
"You didn't answer why you're here," remembered Garam, changing the conversation. Melanie shrugged.
"What's it to you?"
"I'm always looking out for people. It's my duty as a Christian," explained Garam, daring her to make something of it.
"As far away from 99th street as possible," she explained, eventually, "And I promised him that I'd stay with him until he's well and truly gone," she gestured to the noise tank, now with only two lights on. A thought occurred to Garam.
"I bet I can get him fixed."
"I don't think you should."
"Why not? He'll be as good as new. Roboy can handle it."
"He didn't want to be fixed," insisted Melanie. "It was his sepuku."
"You're kidding me," dismissed Garam, "I'll take him back to Roboy. He'll talk sense into the old computer. You'll see." The final lights of the Noise Tank switched off. Garam hefted the machine and placed it over his shoulders. He was strong enough to do it, after ages of hauling stuff around the sewers.
"Hey, what's your name by the way?" he remembered to ask.
"Melanie."
"I'm Garam."
"I know. You're a GG. The whole underground knows thanks to the radio."
"Hey, listen, will you be here tomorrow?"
"I have no intention of going anywhere," said Melanie bluntly.
"Great."