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  Brock agreed, bouncing his antigrav mug on the table. “Hear, hear!”

  “So what does this mean for us right now?” Molly continued. “Well,” she turned to Crash and then to Brock. “We’re going to need faster transportation. A lot of these jobs are between the inner and outer systems… and beyond. If we want to compete and prove our competence, we need to be developing the tech to do this faster and more efficiently than anyone else. I want you guys to put together some ideas of how we could do that, if you had a budget that, effectively, was limitless.

  Brock’s eyes lit up.

  Crash remained characteristically cool. “You got it, boss.”

  “I’d like to review your initial ideas later on today, please.”

  The pair looked at each other. Crash shrugged. Brock nodded. “Sure thing.”

  “We also need to be able to defend ourselves, so that means the bird needs fitting with weapons. So if we can have a list of recommendations and rough costs, that would be good, as well.”

  Crash made a note on his holo.

  “Paige,” Molly announced, reeling through the list of items she was holding in her mind. “Paige has been doing a brilliant job of getting kit ordered, and making this place more like a home and an operations base. Paige is our go-to liaison for everything. Whether it’s kit, communications, or any miscellaneous problem, Paige is your contact. And she operates with my authority, so if she comes to you with instructions, it’s because I’ve asked her to, or she’s run something by me. Clear?”

  Everyone nodded.

  Paige was swinging in her swivel chair, grinning from ear to ear, as if she was the little sister of the family and had just been given absolute power.

  To remind her who they were, Crash lobbed a screwed up piece of paper he’d been fiddling with, and it caught in her hair. The boys chuckled as she flapped about, trying to find where it had gone.

  Joel also added his reaction to qualify Molly’s statement. “But only I have authority to issue press ups as training correction, though.”

  The group groaned.

  Molly waited for them to settle and turn their attention back to her before continuing.

  “Joel is our ops leader. He’s in charge out in the field, and is responsible for your safety out there. You don’t sneeze unless he says so when you’re on an op. And to that end, everyone needs to go through some basic training.”

  She looked at Brock and Paige. “Now, while you guys aren’t here in a field op capacity, the reality is, even on this base, you’re going to be in situations where you’re under pressure to perform. This may mean needing to know how to fire a weapon, or keep yourself safe, but it may even mean simply being able to communicate efficiently while your teammates are under pressure. Joel has immense experience in training people to do this, to ensure that lives aren’t lost. Over the next few weeks, he’ll be putting together a training program for all personnel. Including those who will join us in the future, she added.

  And to that end, she turned to Joel. “We’ll need a list of personnel we need to recruit and get on board in order to take on the kinds of jobs we’re currently pitching for, so if we could look at your suggestions by the end of the day, that would be super, too.”

  Joel nodded, making a note on his holo device, as if he couldn’t remember that task.

  “Okay, that’s pretty much it. Any questions?”

  No one raised anything else, so Molly moved on.

  “Okay, Joel - you want to give us an idea of the kinds of cases we’re shooting for?”

  “Sure.” Joel sat up straighter, and started addressing the group. Thirty seconds hadn’t passed before he had a screenshot of the new case system on the conference room holo, flicking through and showing the team all the possible jobs they could take. The boys were certainly more excited about the database than either Molly or Paige, but then, that showed they were engaged with that element of the job, too.

  Molly watched them, pleased at how they were not just bonding with each other, but bonding with the mission.

  After Joel had finished, they took a few questions, then sent the team off to get cracking.

  Joel closed down his holo. “That went well,” he remarked.

  “Yeah. It’s great how they’re all on board.” Molly paused, wondering whether she should broach the subject right now. She decided to just say it.

  “I think in the new wave of recruits we need another computer person.”

  Joel looked at her, curiously. “I thought between you and Oz you had that angle covered?”

  She scratched her cheek. “Well, yes and no. If it were just a matter of skill, of course; but it’s not. For a start, if I’m going to lead this team as we’ve talked about, I haven’t got the physical time and head space to be coding, and hacking and whatever other fuckery we need to get embroiled in.” She paused, and Joel nodded his understanding.

  “That’s first. Secondly, we need someone who isn’t crippled.”

  “What do you mean ‘crippled’?” he asked, turning his head slightly as if he didn’t hear her properly.

  “You know. Crippled. Like, Oz can’t do certain things because of his ‘rules’.” She waved her two fingers in each hand to emphasize the quotation marks she was putting around the word “rules”.

  I’m not fucking crippled!

  You are. And it is getting in our way.

  Joel leaned back in his chair. Molly watched as a smile spread over his face.

  “You want a computer person who will operate more like you, and less like Oz?” His smile was a mile wide at this point.

  “Not exactly. I want someone who can make those judgment calls like a person would. And will do what is necessary when lives are in danger. I need someone with that kind of humanity.”

  Well, fuck you.

  Shut up, Oz, this isn’t about being the best. It’s about forming a team.

  “And what does Oz think about all this?” Joel asked, almost smirking now.

  “The little bitch doesn’t like it. But it’s the way forward.”

  “I’d be inclined to agree. On both counts.” Joel sat up in his chair. “Okay, lemme see what I can do. There’s no doubt that the tech element is a huge part of any operation, no matter which cases we take. Plus, if we’re going to scale, this area is only going to need more manpower, not less.”

  “Thanks,” smiled Molly, even though she was feeling like she’d kind of just replaced everything that was special about her.

  It’s just a feeling. And it’s necessary. It will pass. She told herself.

  Yeah, and what about how I feel?

  You remember you gave me that 4077?

  Of course. It was necessary. Why do you bring that up?

  Payback is a bitch.

  Oz went quiet. Molly got up and left the room.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Gaiman-67, Safe house, Common Area

  Later that day, Paige and Molly were in the common area. The downloaded news reports were playing in the background.

  Paige had found Neechie wandering around, and decided she wanted to pet him - regardless of what he wanted. She wrestled with him to keep him on her lap as she sat on the sofa next to Molly. “Why won’t you sit still and let me huggle you?” she scolded.

  “He looks like he wants to get down,” Molly said flatly, barely taking her eyes off the holo screen.

  “I know, but he’s just too cute.” She ruffled his bare skin gently with her fingers, as he recoiled a little, trying to get down off her knee. “I just want to cuddle him, and fuss over him…”

  Molly chatted almost absently, “And he wants to be out catching mice, or space cadets, or whatever the heck those creatures do.”

  Neechie had made one effective wriggle and escaped momentarily to the floor before Paige lunged and picked him up again. She was now rubbing her nose on his.

  Neechie, in his infinite wisdom, submitted and let her, almost as if he knew that playing along was the only way he was going
to be released from the incessant smothering.

  “Maybe,” Paige agreed. “But it’s safer for him in here.”

  Molly was still watching the news. “I’m sure he’s out most of the time anyway,” she remarked distractedly, barely paying attention to the snuggling, or her own thought process.

  “Yeah. I’ve noticed that,” Paige paused, her hands still on his furless body for a moment. She frowned. “And I haven’t figured out how he gets in and out. I mean, aren’t these buildings meant to be sealed?”

  Molly’s attention on the screen broke. She glanced over at the sphinx. “Yeah, on account of the atmosphere being abrasive. Apart from anything it keeps the dust out. And we’re covered for any kind of passing meteor shower or whatever.”

  Paige look thoughtful for a moment. “So, then, how does he get out? And back in again?”

  Molly shrugged and looked back at the screen, reading the subtitles she had missed.

  Paige piped up again. “You know, it could be that he’s tapped into that dimensional transit stuff we were talking about the other week.”

  Molly looked back at her, ready to give her shit over stuff she’d already confessed to not being into. “You mean, the demons?”

  Paige nodded, ignoring the mocking look that Molly was starting with. “Exactly. He may be able to shift and move through these other dimensions to different points in space in this one.”

  Molly stood up a little and tucked one leg under her, shifting her body away from Paige and the demon sphinx.

  Paige recognized the movement as a thinly veiled attempt to move away from them. “It’s okay,” she told Molly. “It’s not as creepy as it sounds. It’s just a skill set… like you can hack through a firewall. Neetch can just pass through a concrete one.”

  Molly wasn’t convinced, but her curiosity outweighed the creep-factor she was experiencing. “Okay,” she said slowly. “Tell me more…”

  Paige and Molly talked a while about some of the exercises her grandmother used to have her do. They even had a little practice, until Molly’s eye was caught by a news report.

  She swiped at the large screen to turn up the sound. “Hang on,” she told Paige. “Look!” she indicated to the screen.

  “Outbreaks of violence?” Paige read across the bottom of the screen. “It looks like footage from a holo device, like someone was just in a mocha shop and happened to catch it.”

  Molly grunted her agreement, as she watched it unfold. “Wonder why that’s on the news,” she mused.

  Paige started to shrug, before realizing. “Ah, looks like there have been a few similar ones across the city.” She looked across at Molly. “Why, your Grindle-senses tingling?”

  She grinned.

  Molly smiled. “Not sure,” she said. “It might be nothing.” A few moments passed and then she peeled her eyes away from the holo.

  “So, these practices… you think that if I start just meditating and becoming aware of the field, I’ll be on my way to mastering this realm thing.”

  Paige giggled at her practical assessment of everything she’d been describing to her about the rituals and practices. “Yeah; it’s the first step, so sure.”

  “Ace!” exclaimed Molly brightly. “I can’t believe there was this whole other world of physics that I’d somehow missed.”

  Molly, I’ve been researching some of these practices Paige has been referring to.

  Oh, good. Do we have another manual to study, then?

  Ugh, no.

  Flashcards maybe?

  No. I was about to point out that this is unlikely to be something you can just master in a few sessions. These people take a whole lifetime to learn and practice, in order to finally ascend once. That isn’t even stepping into and out of the etheric like you’re trying to do.

  Molly paused for a moment. Oz could feel her pushing him out of her circuits a little.

  Molly?

  Yeah. I just don’t think they’ve optimized this shit.

  Safe house, Gaiman-67, Conference room

  Molly breezed past Joel as he came into the kitchen. “Morning!” she said, uncharacteristically brightly for pre-caffeination.

  “Bloody hell, you’re up early!” Joel called after her, noticing she had only her first mocha in her hand.

  Molly called back, “Done sleeping.” Then she was gone.

  Crash commented from the kitchen, “Joel, it’s past 11:00.”

  Joel ambled in to talk to him. “Yeah, hence the early comment. She’s never up and showered and working before midday, unless we’re on a mission.”

  Molly had disappeared through the common area and off into the conference room down the hall.

  She pushed her way through the conference room door, carefully so as not to slop the mocha.

  Molly, the download of news and messages from our private server is here.

  Great, let’s take a look at it on the main holo.

  She picked her spot while Oz fired up the holo screens. Carefully, she placed the mocha mug onto the table, then surveyed the nearby swivel chairs to identify her favorite - despite the fact they were all identical.

  There’s a message from Garet.

  Okay, let’s watch that first.

  Molly walked back over to the door, making sure that there was no one loitering in the corridor, and closed it gently. Then she went back to the chair now designated her favorite and sat down.

  She looked up at the image of Garet that filled the screen. He looked pretty much the same as when they had left him back on Estaria, though he was now wearing distinctly more hair gel.

  Okay, play.

  “Molly, hi. Greetings of the day upon you.” Garet glanced furtively around his office, off camera, like he was checking he wasn’t being watched.

  He continued. “Look, I can’t really talk, but I wanted to let you know that the police have closed the case on Paige. She’s free to return whenever she wants.”

  Molly smiled. That was good news. She wondered briefly if Paige would want to go back, though. She felt a pang in her chest, but the message kept playing, like she was watching a movie.

  “In other news…” Garet continued, “I made Senator!” He grinned. Despite the fact he was proud, there was genuineness behind his pride. “It’s a great opportunity to serve the people. When they’ll let me. But we knew this would be the gig when I came back. So, you’ll probably hear it all over the news when you get your downloads, but I wanted you to hear it from me first.”

  He looked down and seemed to play with something on his desk, thinking. Molly wondered if he was going to share something else, or if there was something wrong. She couldn’t tell.

  “Okay. That’s all I’ve got. Looking forward to seeing you all soon. Tell Paige I say hi. And stay safe.”