MF1.0 - 64 - Where From Here?

Shrieking was Stef’s natural response when Ryan appeared from nowhere beside her. ‘Did you have to do that?’

He shrugged, then his expression turned serious. ‘What happened?’

‘You can’t know already. You can’t. I don’t even know yet, so you can’t.’ The doors slid open but she stayed still.

‘What happened?’

‘I. Don’t. Know.’

‘I find it highly unlikely that you of all people wouldn’t have reasoning for actions.’

 ‘Was that a compliment or an insult?’

‘What happened?’

‘Stop asking me that!’ She walked out of the lift to put some space between them. ‘One definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.’

‘I am getting different results.’

‘I will hit you again.’

‘Most recruits…wouldn’t dare speak to me this way.’

‘If you’re telling me to snap a salute-’

‘Which I’m not.’

‘And act like a good little narc, then you can just go to wherever those pinchy leather shoes went to.’

‘What-’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘It wasn’t real!’ She flumped down and poked at the concrete. ‘It wasn’t real,’ she repeated.

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘Of course not, we don’t put our recruits in danger for the purposes of training sessions.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">She opened and closed her mouth a few times, then went back to poking the concrete. ‘Doesn’t matter, just send me to the tech department, least there I’ll be useful.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">He leant down and put a piece of paper in front of her. ‘So I should just sign off on this?’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">She poked the paper. ‘What is it?’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘A transfer form, it appeared on my desk, that’s how I knew.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘Wow, things work fast around here.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">He sat down beside her, his long coat scraping on the concrete. ‘Not really, this is the fifth transfer request since you arrival. There were also three for your interrogation and one for your execution.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘…you aren’t joking, are you?’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘You will know when I’m joking. Also, Agent Taylor is very fond of paperwork. Especially when it works in his favour.’ He laid the piece of paper on the ground in front of her. It was a very simple, very blunt request for her transfer.

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘So sign it.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘What held you back in training?’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘The fact that I’m a fscking hacker.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘Stef…’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘It wasn’t real. I knew it wasn’t real. I knew that nothing I did would have any lasting consequence, that the holodeck safeties were on. It wasn’t real so I couldn’t treat it as such.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘You did fine in tests.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘Yeah, well, for all I knew, you did set bloodthirsty hobs onto us.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘There’s no such thing,’ he said with certainty.

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘It could have been real. That’s my point.’ She stared at the ground. ‘This is why I stayed at home, no risk, no failure. Confusion, concussion and being claimed as lost property aren’t exactly big successes.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘Pardon?’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">She shrugged. ‘Just something that put another plus in the tech department column.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘Do you believe you’d do better if it were real, and not a training simulation?’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘Yes. No. Maybe.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘Recruit!’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘Yes.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">He folded up the transfer page. ‘Then prove it.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘How?’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘Tonight, I will throw you at the Solstice, you can decide then whether or not you wish to be under my command or that of Agent Jones.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘…Ryan.’

<p style="color:rgb(189,190,190);font-family:Verdana,'CenturyGothic',Tahoma,sans-serif;line-height:normal;">‘As I said, you will know when I’m joking.’