The Frame Job, Part 1: Yu

by Dylan Birtolo

  Yu sighed and slumped a bit, leaning on the breakfast bar. “There’s more than just the nuyen.”

  Emu got up and walked over, standing across from Yu and staring at this face. “What else is there?” She grinned. “You get into trouble sleeping with the wrong girl who turned out to be the Johnson’s daughter?”

  Despite the jab, Yu didn’t smile and bite back like he knew Emu expected. He frowned and turned away, rummaging in the fridge for something, even though he wasn’t hungry. When he turned back, Emu stood in the same position, the joking grin faded from her face.

  “Door’s open if you want to chat about it. In the interim, I’ll give you a lift. Rude said he’d break our legs if we left without him, and I’m never quite sure if he’s kidding or not.”

  Yu put both hands on the edge of the counter, using them to brace himself. His fingers tightened on the cool surface until they squeaked as his skin stuck while sliding. For her part, Emu stood silent and waited for him to speak. He looked up, scanning to see if any of the others entered the room, but they had the space to themselves for the moment.

  “You know that BTL chip I carry around?” he asked.

  Emu nodded.

  “It’s from someone important to me. He tripped out on it and went crazy. I…” he swallowed. “It killed him. I was there when it happened. There’s a reason I won’t touch BTLs, even with all the other stuff I do. They’re just bad.”

  He left out the part where he was the one who had had to kill Brother Lee, and that his cyberarm was a daily reminder of the incident, even more so than the burned-out chip he carried. He wasn’t ready to share those details yet. Giving them a voice would make the memories more real, and he had a job to do.

  “I found a warehouse full of next-gen BTLs, the ones straight off the boat and better than anything you’d find over here. Sitting in a warehouse behind more firepower than we can deal with, otherwise I’d want to take them out myself. Ham gaa caan those pricks. They’ve got it coming and deserve worse.”

  He took a deep breath before continuing. “The Johnson said he’ll take out the dealers once we do this job for him. We need to get it done before they get a chance to move their cargo.”

  Emu said nothing, but after a brief pause reached out and put one of her hands on Yu’s and gave a comforting squeeze.

  “Don’t tell the others, ’kay? Don’t want to deal with Rude’s ‘you’re getting too emotional, elfy-pants’ shit.” Yu dropped his voice and puffed up his chest as he imitated the troll, making Emu grin. The impression injected some much-needed laughter into the scene, and his own smile was genuine as he pushed the memories into the back of his mind where they belonged. After all, he had work to do and he needed focus.

  It took a few hours for the others to wake up and check in. Frostburn and Zipfile both left, but Rude crashed in the safehouse for the night, and Yu knew better than to wake the troll. If he could be difficult when rested, Yu didn’t want to tempt fate by disturbing the troll’s limited sleep. The solid thump of the troll’s feet hitting the floor let him know when it was time to finish getting ready.

  Looking over his wardrobe, Yu debated how to try and pass himself off to security. In normal situations, they would have taken the time to acquire an old uniform or fabricate one. But with their limited timetable, he’d need to use what he had available. Passing himself off as a maintenance worker was too risky, given they didn’t know who serviced the Telestrian Headquarters. Such a mistake would make him recognizable as an imposter even with a passing glance.

  The limited information they had indicated the office in Seattle involved biotech research. The company itself occupied most of the building on Denny Way, with only a few small businesses occupying the ground floor, mostly in the food industry. Passing as a member of one of those companies would be easier, but wouldn’t get him access to the terminals he needed to reach.

  Which meant his best option was to pose as a manager of some sort and pull up any techno jargon he could about recent Telestrian products and public research. Of course, Zipfile had anticipated this need and prepared plenty of files for him to review and commit to memory as best he could. Putting on one of his higher-end suits, he got to work studying the materials to back up his story.

  He continued reviewing the information, quizzing himself and listening to presentations to make sure to get the pronunciation correct for complicated medical terminology. Rude pounded on his door once, hard enough to make Yu question its stability.

  The three of them left for Telestrian HQ. By now, the sun had risen and the streets were crowded with people anxious to get to their jobs before their corporate overlords penalized them for tardiness. Yu didn’t understand how people could put up with it every morning. At least when he committed himself to the Triad or to his team, it was for a family. Corporations viewed their subordinates as pieces of machinery, simple cogs to get the job done. What value did they gain from such a relationship?

  In the end, Yu got out a block and a half from the building, joining the heavy tide of people walking on the sidewalk. It seemed easier than waiting for the cars to move along. Plus, it afforded him the benefit of Emu’s car not being seen when he entered the building. The fewer risks they took, the better. He had every faith in his ability to succeed without a problem, but a little extra caution never hurt.

  Yu turned with the stream of people diverting from the main river and approached the front doors of the Telestrian building. It stretched thirty-six stories into the sky. Sunlight glinted off the mirrored windows, making him squint even without looking up. It gave him an excuse to drop his head as he stepped through the doorway, taking advantage of the environmental effect to limit his exposure to cameras which might run facial recognition software.

  The main floor of the building was mostly open space, with several shops ringing the perimeter. A sniff rewarded him with a pleasant whiff of fresh-baked pastries and hot soykaf. Several vendors already had long lines, all of which followed a strict protocol of winding back and forth on themselves, even without the aid of guide ropes.

  Most of the workers strode across the center of the building to the secure access point on the far side, manned by a couple of bored-looking security guards. They both stood at their post, but one of them had the glassy-eyed stare of someone distracted by the thoughts in their head. The other guard, a troll woman, waved her hand in a slow perpetual circle as she directed scanned employees through to the elevators.

  As Yu stepped up, he prayed the fake SIN would pass the scanner test, knowing there was little he could do about it now. If something went wrong, he might be able to talk his way out of it, but until that happened, he didn’t so much as acknowledge the guards’ presence. Doing so would make him stand out from the rest of the horde as they prepared to chain themselves to their desks for the day.

  And then he stood on the other side, heading toward the elevators. The troll continued her ceaseless wave, and he wasn’t even sure the other guard so much as blinked. The easy part was done, now he needed to find a terminal that would give him access.

 

  He sent the message to the entire team, even though he knew Zipfile was the one reviewing the floorplans and piecing together the data from their brief information gathering. He would be willing to bet she had stayed up throughout the entire night trying to form a full 3D model of the building.

  she replied.

  Yu stepped into the elevator and timed his button press to coincide with another rider’s. It was a simple matter of jostling into position at the right time. If the elevator locked out certain floors until credentials were scanned, the timing let him bypass the security measure.

  None of the other people in the elevator got off on the 23rd floor, leaving him standing in an e
mpty hallway covered in sickly gray carpet. He noticed the flat panel beside him, even though it should be flush with the outside of the building. No windows meant they wanted to prevent an easy access point. The bright lights on this floor chased away any thought of shadows, meaning skulking about would not be an option. Yu strained to listen, but only caught the faint ding of one of the elevators as it opened on a nearby floor.

  Summoning all the confidence he could muster, Yu strode down the hallway. If he couldn’t hide, the best thing to do would be pretend like he belonged there.

  The pathway split up ahead and he glanced in each direction, seeing doors opening off to either side, but no signs. He walked up to the nearest door and opened it, peering inside to see an empty office.

 

  Zipfile’s response came back within seconds.

 

 

  A soft creak interrupted his message, sounding like rubber squished underneath a heavy weight. Yu grabbed the handle of the door next to him and ducked inside, easing it closed with as much speed as he could manage without making a noise.

  Once it latched shut, he slid across the wall to the far corner where the darkness was thickest. At least this office didn’t have windows either, making it almost pitch black. The only light leaked through from underneath the door.

 

  Zipfile was the first to ask a question, but Rude’s message came through right after.

 

 

  The footsteps grew closer, approaching the door. They were soft and muffled through the wall, but unmistakable. Yu crouched down, coiling his legs and getting ready to spring if need be.

  When the footsteps continued past without any hesitation, Yu remained in position, counting to five before allowing himself to skulk back to the door. He pressed his ear against it, listening for some trace of the patrol, but hearing nothing.

  Yu opened the door, turning his face away from the crack and letting the light in so his eyes could adjust. Then he peered through. He caught a glimpse of a human-sized person in uniform turning a corner. He didn’t get to see much, but he did notice the guard carried some sort of rifle in his hands. Yu slipped into the hall, closing the door behind him to leave it as he found it.

 

  Yu didn’t wait for a response before continuing down the hall.

 

  He turned toward the center of the building as Zipfile had suggested, working away from the perimeter. These halls lacked the large number of doors lining the hall, presenting him with a blank wall that gave little, if any place to hide.

  Yu steered away from the long hallways, searching for an alternate route that wouldn’t leave him exposed for as long. Given the general atmosphere of the floor, talking his way out of a situation could prove difficult if someone saw him.

  The next corner he turned down had small alcoves spaced out along the length of the passage. Yu decided to go this way, his feet gliding across the carpet without making a sound. He paid extra attention to any possible noises, straining to catch any advance warning of the patrols. A cough came from up ahead, and Yu ducked into the nearest alcove, pressing himself into the corner. Forcing himself to take slow breaths in through his nose, he stayed in control and calmed his heartrate. The fingers of his cyberarm curled into a tight fist as he waited for the guard to come into view. He didn’t want to force a conflict, but if he got caught, he might not have much choice.

  The footsteps grew louder as the guard got closer. He noticed a few details, like a soft scuff of the feet across the fabric of the carpet. The guard had a rapid-fire cough as they tried to clear their throat. Time seemed to slow down with each step. The first thing to come around the corner was the barrel of a rifle followed by hands covered in armored gloves.

  The security guard came into full view, the human woman staring straight ahead as she marched forward in measured steps. Her gaze didn’t shift as she continued on her route. Yu stayed in the alcove, remining out of sight and not wanting to move until he counted out her steps and assumed she must’ve reached the next corner. Only then did he peek out, looking to the end of the hall.

  When he saw it was empty, he didn’t hesitate to leave the alcove and continue on his path toward the only door he could see. Taking time to relish his luck did nothing to help accomplish his goal. If anything, it would hinder it. And this was business.

  Yu picked up his pace, moving as fast as he dared. Years of training had him easing his weight onto each foot and rolling off the ball in a smooth motion. His knees were bent, taking long strides as he ate up the distance to the door.

  When he reached it, he saw it was locked with a maglock. Removing a maglock passkey from his jacket, he swiped it through the lock, hoping it would work. The lock turned green, and a solid click let him know his luck continued to hold. Yu opened the door and slipped inside, easing it shut behind him to maintain his stealth.

  “Diu,” he swore.

  The room he found himself in was gigantic. It had to take up at least a quarter of the entire floor. Stored in the room were row after row of server racks, fans spinning in a pervasive hum that drowned out all other sounds. Lights flickered from the computers, creating dancing shadows throughout the cavernous space. He couldn’t be sure, but if he had to guess, the cushioned floor underneath him was some part of the cooling system. And possibly the security system.

  The dim lights did not provide an excellent view of his surroundings, but he made out a few cameras mounted up along the seam where the wall met the ceiling. They were in plain view, with no attempt made to hide them. Whoever designed the security for this room wanted to make sure any trespassers knew the trouble they would find themselves in. Some part of his brain wondered how many of the cameras were functional, and how often anyone watched the feed. Was it true security or were the obvious cameras just a plant, hiding the true threat?

 

 

  Yu shook his head even though his companion couldn’t see the gesture.

 

  He’d been watching the cameras, and his statement was not simply an attempt to keep the others safe. The limited light would help him slip along the perimeter. Although he’d want to take it slow in case they had motion sensors hooked up. But that wasn’t anything he hadn’t dealt with before.

 

 

  Rude was the next one to chime in. r />
  Yu focused on the situation in front of him, checking on the cameras’ field of view. He inched along the wall, not wanting to go for the first couple of racks, which had a camera centered on them. It took several minutes before he stood across from a rack he felt comfortable approaching.

  Crouching low, his knees ached as he crept toward the computer hardware. The lower his profile, the better his chances of getting away unseen. He had to grip the rack frame for balance and to relieve some of the pressure on his legs. Feeling around with his fingers in the shadows, he found a port he could attach the drive to. He connected it, staying in position as he waited for the device to finish doing its electronic magic.

 

  Before he received a response, the lights on the computer in front of him blinked wildly and some hardware inside it whined in protest. His hand hovered over the drive as he debated whether to jerk it free.

  The lights in the entire room turned on, making Yu wince at the sudden flood of brightness. He snatched the drive free and leaped back to the wall, trying to stay hidden.

  He headed for the door, a bit faster than when he entered the room. Just before he reached it, he heard the maglock slide open and saw the handle turn.

  Yu jumped forward, getting behind the door as it opened. When he saw the barrel of a gun sticking out around the edge, he placed both hands on the door and slammed it on the intruder.

  The door smacked into the corpsec guard on the other side, eliciting a grunt from the woman as she got knocked into the frame of the door. Yu swung around the door and beat the barrel of the gun aside with his wrist as he stepped forward and put his foot on top of the guard’s. Having her pinned in that position, his left hand snaked out, striking the woman in the neck just below her jaw.

  She tucked her shoulder and pulled away from the blow, absorbing some of the shock and turning a debilitating blow into an uncomfortable sparring injury. To her credit, she didn’t try to bring her gun to bear in the close quarters combat. She dropped it, letting it clatter against the floor as she jerked a knife free from an arm holster. She swung the weapon at Yu, forcing him to knock it aside with his regular arm.