This is the Life

John waited across the table from Jackie, hands under his coat ready to draw his pistols on the server if need be. The door between the cars hissed as it slid open, and a portly man with rosy cheeks came through carrying a tray with a silver cloche. Though he hardly looked like a threat, Advanced Spy confirmed that the man was nobody of note.

The server isn’t dangerous. The Gamer merely smiled up at the man as he came in and set the tray down, opening it to reveal a piece of meat browned to perfection over a bed of rice, the whole affair covered in a rich, brown sauce.

“Your foie gras rice, madam.” He retreated as another server took his place, setting down a glass of water and an empty wine glass. He popped the cork and poured it for her, stepping back to let the first man take his place. “Is everything to your satisfaction?”

John used Advanced Spy on the three items set before her to see if there was anything wrong with them, tuning out her conversation as he read the resulting screens.

Poisonous? Is that because **** is considered poisonous or did someone poison her wine? John thought, deciding it would be safer for his charge to not be **** either way.

Something’s been poisoned? How can you tell? One’s voice took on a tone of urgency, and John heard the footsteps above as he headed towards the stairs.

I have an ability that allows me to look at things and learn about them. One of the qualities of the wine she’s been served is poisonous, but I’ve never used it on **** before. It’s entirely possible that that tag is on all ****, John replied, watching the wait staff leave. “Hey… do me a favor and don’t drink the wine. Probably not a good idea to be drunk on the off chance we’re attacked.”

That’s annoyingly vague.

“I agree, I didn’t order it. They brought it on recommendation.” The technomancer put the glass and open bottle on a nearby table before digging into her meal. David appeared on John’s shoulder in his incorporeal form, head cocked at the meat in front of him.

We’re on the job now, buddy, no time for that. He tried to only direct that thought at his hawk instead of also telling that to his partner. He had no idea whether he succeeded due to the lack of response. His pet disappeared again, though not before a brief chirp of protest.

The next few hours were relatively uneventful. Jackie decided to stay in the dining car and watch holoshows there instead of the bedroom upstairs. John found this odd and asked her why, but her dismissive response was that the overabundant, gaudy furniture in the room above made her feel claustrophobic.

He tried (and failed) to not get too involved with the random sitcom she turned on as she tried her best to relax in the company of a relative stranger. Looking at the window-screens, he noticed the buildings outside were now far below the track for the most part. The train was at least a hundred meters in the air above the highest buildings. Looking forward, he noticed another train station in the not-too-far-off distance. The screens displaying the outside turned off and receded back into the wall as they neared it.

The smooth stop of the last checkpoint was not repeated here. The train slammed to a halt, the people inside only remaining in their seats thanks to the shock dampeners. Still, it was enough to jostle them in their seats. The open wine bottle and full glass on the table next to them were about to fall over, but John caught them in time, saving the white tablecloth beneath. One came down the stairs in time to see this, nodding in acknowledgement of his efforts.

The wall slowly opened as he had expected it to, but he was not expecting the crowd of armed guards outside of it. Gone were the duo of sleek, armored guards of the last checkpoint. In their place were paramilitary (or more probable actually military, John reminded himself, their customs were clearly different from Earth) dressed in simple urban camo and carrying rifles. He used Advanced Spy on the first man to ensure that this wasn’t actually an ambush, but he was just a simple guard.

That’s relieving. It makes sense that they’d have more guards in the more impoverished districts, I guess. That just seems… really messed up. An armed divide between the rich and the poor. Just doesn’t sit right with me. He looked outside, taking his guild card out of his inventory. As John, One, and Jackie disembarked, a dozen guards filed into the train car, leaving nine guards behind on the platform.

The remaining guards divided themselves between Jackie, John, and One. One’s trio scanned the passport screen on his wrist while incessantly asking him questions about his armor, if its model would see government release, and other inquiries.

Jackie’s entourage did take her phone to scan her passport, but took one look at it before handing it back and asking for her autograph, among other personal favors. This made her noticeably uncomfortable, and One stepped in to cut them off.

The men who took John’s card weren’t nearly as placated. “What’s your name and guild alias?”

“John Newman and The Gamer, I believe that’s on the card.” He watched as the men took out a clunky scanner, clearly an older model than what the guards at the last checkpoint had used.

“What’s your purpose of travelling?” The grizzled man in front of him had a face harder than the concrete they stood on, and stared John in the eye as the scanner in his hands beeped twice.

“Business. I’m one of Ms. Anor’s bodyguards.” He felt awkward using such… formal vernacular, but the situation clearly called for it.

“Let up on the rookie, he’s with us.” One had already escorted Jackie back into the train car, which had apparently been deemed clear by the men who had inspected it. He stepped between John and the overzealous guard, breaking the impromptu interrogation. John was handed back his card, and they were waved back in.

As they settled in, Jackie decided she didn’t feel too claustrophobic in the bedroom after all and scurried upstairs. With a shrug of acknowledgement from his partner, John followed her. He reached the top just in time to see her slam the door to the bathroom, shutting herself in.

“Are you alright?” John called through the door, finding it odd that she had slammed it.

“I’m fine, I’d just like to be alone for a while if that’s okay with you.” Her voice could barely be heard through the thick steel, but getting the message he sunk into the shadows, leaning against the wall.

She came out nearly an hour later, somehow paler than when she went in. He was on the verge of nodding off as she called into the seemingly empty room, “Are you still here?”

“Still here, I just figured out of sight, out of mind.” He emerged from the shadows, hands in his pockets as he turned to face her.

She jumped at him appearing out of nowhere, putting her hands up. “Would you terribly mind… waiting downstairs?”

“I’m sorry, but I have to stay here. I’ll stay in the shadows, you won’t even know I’m here.” He didn’t realize that his reply had the opposite effect, the thought of unseen eyes spying on her only made her feel worse.

“Please stay visible. Just… don’t stare at me or what I’m doing,” she asserted, sitting back at the computer desk. He leaned against the wall again, careful not to fully immerse himself in the shadows by standing in the light of one of the screens.

The skies in District Five were mostly clear. Owning a hovercraft wasn’t as rare here as it was in District Six, but they were still owned by less than a thousandth of its population. The train rushed on toward the only district below this one in social order, too confident in its speed to notice the vehicle steadily following it, a kilometer above in the air.

“You’re going after poker chips? Is that even worth the effort?” The man’s overexcited voice cut through the silence as they flew above their mark.

“One is going to be there. You wanted to test your armor against his, right? The old retail models not stacking up?” Asley was growing tired of the constant complaining from the man she had decided to work together with. His technology couldn’t be argued with, but his personality left her wanting. “You sure you can get past their shields with that?”

He had been planning the heist anyway, so he gladly accepted the hired muscle. Apparently One was guarding Anor, and she had some bounty placed on her by the Extinction Kings. He didn’t care much about that, though he’d gladly take a share. That it was a currency for a different Kingdom entirely didn’t matter much to him.

“Please, their low-tech plasma field may protect them from energy blasts or bullets, but my babies are shielded kinetic projectiles. It won’t be a problem. You told me the other guy uses pistols, right? You sure you can handle him with nothing but a katana?” The bald man’s face emerged from his helmet to stare at the strange woman who had approached him.

“Doubt me again and it’ll be your head,” she said, slicing clean through one of the magnetic spheres he was so fond of. It stood in the air for a moment, unaware that it had been cut, before falling to the floor with a clutter.

“Don’t mess with my babies!” he screeched, the craft swerving as he jerked, controls in hand, to cradle the halves. A few button presses later, the wires remeshed and it was its old, floating self again.

“Pay attention! They’re more than halfway between district five and six. It’s time,” Asley ordered, holding onto the handles at her sides as they dove down. Ten metallic spheres larger than those in the vehicle appeared outside. They shot toward the first and second car of the train, impossibly fast.