Beatless: Volume 1

by Satoshi Hase

  Arato knew he was too quick to trust people, but he forced a smile and said the words he couldn’t take back: “Well, no sense sitting here worrying. Let’s go!”

  And, as always, Lacia helped her thoughtless owner get closer to his goal. “It will be difficult to enter the combat zone and extract Kengo Suguri safely,” she explained. “The security system within the building is still active. If we disable this system in order to enter, we will be seen by the building security as a new threat.”

  Arato looked down at his own body. On the way there, Lacia had him stop and buy a resin jumpsuit and gloves. He also had a motorcycle helmet to put on before he went in, which meant he would look exactly like what anyone would expect terrorist reinforcements to.

  “Since our objective is to rescue Kengo Suguri, I believe it would be optimal to enter without alerting the internal security system,” Lacia added.

  The back hatch of the van opened. They had parked it in an alley behind the building. Lacia had been changing inside. Seeing her in the black and white bodysuit from the night they had first met was oddly sensational to Arato. She was a cute girl, and thinking of her as a tool, as his own tool to be exact, made blood rush to Arato’s head.

  “Can we do that?” Arato asked.

  Using only her light blue eyes, Lacia guided Arato’s eyes to the inside of the van. There, laid out haphazardly on the floor, was her black coffin with its innards expanded.

  “You may remember, on the night we met I used a meta-material attack to render our targets invisible,” Lacia said. Arato didn’t follow, so she expanded her explanation. “We will become invisible,” she said.

  At Lacia’s prompting, Arato put on his terminal goggles, and then the helmet. Lacia had told him that, apparently, the meta-materials with negative curvature would become unstable if applied directly to the skin due to the water content in human sweat.

  The Black Monolith — Lacia’s coffin — which looked almost tree-like in its expanded state, flashed twice. Once they had bathed in a film of the meta-material, light of a specific frequency would bend and flow around them. In other words, they had both become invisible from every angle. The problem was, the light redirected by the meta-material included light that would normally enter the eyes to provide vision, and Arato’s field of vision went pitch black.

  “Please activate your terminal goggles. The Monolith will collect sonar data and project a 3D stereo display directly to your retinas.” Lacia’s voice echoed out of the total darkness.

  Arato opened the visor of the helmet and flipped the switch on his goggles, which started to project a monochrome world. Anything that repelled sound appeared as a stark outline against a black background. Then, as each pulse of sound passed, the objects would slowly fade from view. There was a kind of magical beauty in the transience of this black and white vision, and Arato felt like he had stepped into another world: a colorless world made of visible sound, where he walked unseen.

  He let out a slow breath of admiration. “I feel like I’ve turned into something else,” he joked. “Something not human.” Looking at the monochrome world, he suddenly started to wonder if Lacia perceived the world the same way he normally did.

  “Though you are invisible, you still rely on your voice to speak. This is inconvenient,” Lacia decided. “I believe it would be optimal for you to utilize a transmission implant.”

  “I’d rather avoid surgery if I can,” Arato told her.

  “Very well. Please bite down on this,” Lacia said, handing him a small white object, the size of an eraser, with her invisible hand.

  Arato put it in his mouth and bit down on it with his back teeth, which sank into the object as if it had been chewing gum.

  “This is an underwater speaker, for use while diving. The mouthpiece speaker electrically stimulates the auditory center directly, transmitting audio directly to the brain,” Lacia explained.

  “Wait, when did you buy this?” Arato asked.

  “I prepared it in anticipation of just such a situation,” Lacia said. “I can understand what you say without the need for you to open your mouth and say it, so please keep your mouth shut when you talk. You wouldn’t want them finding us because they heard your voice, would you?”

  〈This is a weird time to be switching to your big sister style of talking, Lacia,〉 Arato said, practicing his speaking without breathing.

  The system guessed what he was saying based on mouth and throat movements, and converted the interpreted text into electric speech, which Arato heard over the speaker. Through the same speaker, he heard Lacia’s simulated voice echo in his head.

  〈We are about to break and enter, so please leave your pocket terminal behind. It could be used to pinpoint your location.〉

  Lacia always used a speaker to talk anyway, so she was an old hand at these secret, silent conversations. Arato handed over his pocket terminal, and Lacia cut the power and left it inside the automatic van. With that, Arato had also cut himself off from contact with the outside world.

  Through the goggles, he saw Lacia as a white shape made not of light but of sound. She pulled her device out of the back of the van. 〈With my device in sensory mode, the incoming data load is greater than I can process. In order for me to ensure that my chosen behavior is optimal, please take my hand,〉 she said.

  With one hand supporting her heavy device, Lacia hesitantly reached out her left hand. Arato took it, and he felt her narrow fingers grip his. He felt how soft she was. 〈Aren’t we standing a little too close together?〉 he asked.

  〈My behavior control program contains no data for optimal behavior toward a human I cannot see. Therefore, I believe it will be less burdensome for my processor to react to your movements, rather than to the outside world. Is this unpleasant for you?〉 she asked. Lacia, who always seemed so confident in the actions she took, was relying on him. She pressed in close to him, and he smelled a sweet scent, despite her not breathing. It made his pulse race.

  〈Well, let’s make sure we’re really invisible,〉 Arato said. Her footsteps were shaky as he escorted her out of the alley. No one looked at them as they made their way to the Oi Industry Promotion Center; it was clear that no one could see them.

  They were about to illegally trespass into a restricted building. If they were caught, Arato could be arrested. 〈If this goes wrong, they might take you away, Lacia. Are you still okay going along with me on this? It’s kind of a selfish request,〉 Arato said.

  〈This is something you have decided to do,〉 Lacia said, as if that explained everything. Her white audio image tilted its head slightly. A heartless hIE would never rebel against the wishes of its owner; as a tool, she saw no problem in being used for the sake of her owner’s goals. The only issue was Arato’s own feelings on the matter.

  〈Are you sure about this, Arato?〉 Lacia asked. 〈This may very well cost you your life.〉

  〈Well, we’ll just have to try our best to make sure that doesn’t happen,〉 Arato said. He had already heard how deadly this rescue mission was going to be, but having her call attention to the danger again made his breath catch. 〈And, in the end, what I do is up to me, right?〉 he asked.

  Lacia just smiled, an analog hack to make his burden lighter. 〈Then let us say my answer is the same as yours, and leave it at that,〉 she said.

  In a world of audio images, the building they were heading for looked nothing like it would to the naked eye. The surface of the building was made of white ripples, spreading floor by floor, with the 15th floor as their epicenter. That was where Kengo and his comrades were fighting.

  ***

  The Oi Industry Promotion Center was an advanced information management facility. This meant that any radio waves not authorized by the facility were completely blocked out. hIEs, which were basically walking clumps of sensors and recording devices, were especially heavily restricted, considering all the spying they could do. It was an important security feature for any facility that handled highly classified in
formation.

  These sorts of controls were vital in an era where everything was connected wirelessly. All unauthorized transmissions from the outside were rejected, and you couldn’t rely on any wireless equipment inside the building. On the other hand, the security inside the building were free to use all the hIEs and automated equipment they wanted. Of course, these restrictions were only meant to prevent things being brought in from the outside, so anything set up from within the building was free game.

  Kengo hid himself behind a corner of the corridor, leaning against the wall. Combat was raging all around him. The whistling of silenced gunshots, which sent bullets cutting through the air, were echoing off the walls of the corridor.

  “Get me out of here. Get me the hell out of here,” Kengo begged. He looked down at his gun. His hands wouldn’t stop shaking. “Why the hell are they shooting at us?” he asked.

  He was drenched in sweat. Nearby, one of his comrades, who had been shot in the legs, was dragging himself along and crying out with each movement. At first, the security forces had been using the rubber bullets they normally used for suppression. But, after the Antibody Network members used actual firearms to take down several security hIEs, the guards had switched to live rounds.

  The place reeked of blood, and Kengo could see the remains of security hIEs scattered here and there in the corridor. They bore the logo mark of Shingubo; a prolific, government-subsidized drone supplier that made unmanned equipment for the Japanese army.

  It almost seemed to Kengo as though his normal life from just a few hours ago, attending classes at high school, was an illusion. He had been chased into a corner, and he couldn’t shake the stomach-churning tension that had settled on his shoulders.

  “This is bullshit. Sending in humans to fight just because we couldn’t use drones in here,” he cursed.

  There was only one reason their team of rookies was even still alive. A piercing noise came from further down the corridor, after which the gunshots fell silent. A young girl’s relaxed voice broke the sudden stillness.

  “20th floor, north side, suppressed. D-8, you got injured. Report to D2 — the sergeant — and get some painkillers. Then fall back to one of our secured routes. Sorry, that must have hurt. Good job out there,” she said. It was the red and black hIE, Kouka, that had taken down the security hIEs. She was fulfilling her role as the leader of the attack for the Antibody Network perfectly.

  The D group, which included Kengo, had taken point on the infiltration. Struggling under tension and danger from every side, they had managed to make it to the 20th floor. They were exhausted. But, there had only been three injuries so far, and no casualties. Considering that they were actually being shot at, it was nothing short of a miracle.

  “Everyone, move up,” Kouka ordered. “If the security folks get around behind us, I won’t be able to protect you all.”

  The exhausted invasion force appeared from the shadows of the corridor. Kengo also walked out into the northern corridor, where bullet holes showed vividly on the walls. The red-haired Kouka was standing there, with a two meter tall Shingubo security hIE laying at her feet. The blade of Kouka’s massive device was piercing it.

  “D-9, you’ll back me up while we go to floor 21. It’s the meeting reception floor, so we’re almost there. We might run into some humans, so let’s be careful,” she said.

  A chilly, itching sensation ran through the dog-collar style terminal tag that Kengo had received at the start of the mission. To get around the wireless transmission defenses of the building, they were using terminals with a 10 meter infrared transmission range. He was D-9, so his collar was letting him know that he had been chosen.

  To stop the itching sensation from the collar, he stepped forward despite his reservations. Someone whistled from behind him. Apparently, some of his terrorist comrades were jealous of the attention he was getting.

  “Give me a break,” he spat, with a mouth that felt as dry as a bone.

  Kengo, along with every other terrorist there, was just an amateur who wanted to take out his hatred toward hIEs. If Kouka hadn’t been there with them, the attack would have been suppressed in an instant. Everyone there should have understood that it wouldn’t have been strange for any of them to die at any time. And, if any of them could die at any time, everyone should have been wondering when it would be their own turn.

  Amidst these extreme conditions, the Antibody Network members believed that if they simply followed orders, they would prevail. They stopped thinking about anything else, and obeyed Kouka blindly.

  Kouka was smiling brightly, with not a drop of sweat to be seen. Her voice whispered out of Kengo’s collar terminal, since he was within the ten meter infrared range. 〈You should be more friendly with the others or you’ll stick out like a sore thumb,〉 she said.

  Since unauthorized hIEs shouldn’t be able to operate within the building, the infiltration team all believed Kouka was a dependable human commander. There was no way any of them would believe the girl standing in front of them was a Red Box that defied human understanding.

  “D-9, reporting in,” Kengo said, announcing himself by his number.

  All the infiltration unit had done so far was work up a nice sweat running behind Kouka, who possessed battle prowess far beyond their own. The Antibody Network had outsourced their work to an hIE, who was now automating the very human act of hate-driven violence. In this blasphemous holy war, the impotent humans had to rely on machines. Insanity was swallowing Kengo’s world.

  〈That’s a good boy. No one would believe you, even if you did try to tell them I’m not a human,〉 Kouka said as she ran toward the emergency staircase, red hair dancing behind her.

  “The police are stuck on the 1st floor, so let’s hurry. I’ll cut a path, so everyone just get up to the 22nd floor without taking any casualties, got it?” she called out to the others.

  Kengo gripped his gun tightly. Among all that chaos and violence, he didn’t have the courage to draw the wrath of the others by trying to reveal Kouka as an hIE. In life-threatening situations, people tend to lose their ability to detect deception. So, just as humans used fake humans — hIEs — to do their work and make their lives easier, Kengo used fake enthusiasm to cover for himself with the rest of his team.

  “Don’t get so excited you forget the rules, now,” Kouka said. “We’re only shooting hIEs.”

  The men all voiced their acknowledgement. Never in their wildest dreams would they believe that Kouka, who had become the proxy for their rage, was an hIE herself.

  Kouka used the blade of her giant device to cleave the door of the fire escape in two. Faster than Kengo could react, Kouka vanished through the doorway. Harsh light and heat blasted out from the door a moment later, along with gunshots, which were quickly cut short.

  “D-9, fall back, quickly! Everyone, get behind the corner of the hallway and shoot,” Kouka ordered. “But don’t shoot until you’re behind cover.”

  Metallic human figures burst through the smoke pouring out of the fire escape; one, two, three of them. Kengo crept away, hoping to avoid notice, but he heard footsteps chasing after him. The security hIEs had bypassed Kouka and were coming straight for Kengo and the others. Kengo knew he could be shot at any moment. His legs tangled and he fell, scraping his face along the carpet. He was most afraid that a stray bullet from his untrained comrades could hit him, so he tried to curl in on himself to make as small a target as possible.

  His vision shook with the trembling of his body, but he saw a red and black girl leap out from the smoke. Despite her footfalls usually being light as a dancer’s, suddenly she kicked off the ground hard enough that Kengo heard it and felt the vibrations on the floor. Kouka easily pierced through the body armor of one of the security hIEs, skewering it from behind with her red blade.

  The other two security hIEs responded immediately to Kouka’s aggressive attack, which had brought her into close proximity. They were too close for her to make a sweeping attack with her
large device, so Kouka whipped out a large pistol from a hip holster and pressed it to the side of one hIE’s head. The gun didn’t have a silencer, so it roared when she pulled the trigger.

  The only large security hIE still standing pointed its gun at her back. Kouka lashed out with a backward spinning kick, just grazing the hIE’s chin. An anchor pile shot out of the heel of her boot, piercing the hIE’s head and ripping it clean off its shoulders.

  “All done,” Kouka said. Her confidence on the battlefield was almost hypnotic. Even Kengo found it hard to tear his eyes away from her awe-inspiring power and refinement.

  The infiltration team, who hadn’t had a chance to pull their triggers once, returned to the corridor. It was unclear what they were even there for anymore, considering Kouka’s strength. Kengo felt anger bubbling up hot in his belly, and clenched his teeth.

  “How the hell did it even come to this?” Kengo muttered. His rage at being caught up in this scam had been wrung out of his heart, leaving only the strong desire to flee. Society can’t rot without many people desiring it. Just as Kengo was in that moment, people came to terms with situations that they felt they couldn’t change. Slowly, they crumbled.

  Kengo had been forced into this work under duress, and exhaustion had pushed his mind and emotions to the limit. But this whole crazy situation had come about as the result of what he thought were completely rational choices.

  Looking down, he saw one of the fallen security hIEs twitching its arm. The metal hand was attempting to grasp its firearm. When he noticed that, Kengo moved. When he saw the pieces of the hIE bouncing and twitching across the floor, it took him a moment to realize what he had done: he had shot the half-broken hIE. He got a noseful of gunpowder smoke, and felt like he was going to choke. For the first time, he had destroyed an hIE with his own hands.

  As he continued to jerk his finger on the trigger, bullets flew out one after another. The recoil made the barrel of his gun swing more and more wildly. At the realization that he was currently, present progressive tense, staining his hands with an actual crime, Kengo’s mind froze.