by Andy Remic
*
When I awoke I felt narco dregs in my veins and I groaned – and felt the needle and flicked open eyes to see Snow kneeling naked above me with her excited tongue poking sweet between her sweet lips and mandrake filled my system again and she had me in her hands, I was swelling, hardening, and she forced me inside of her again and I laughed, and she squealed, and laughed and forced me back and I did not complain as the union went on once more long into the night and was hot hard and fun and lasted forever...
*
When I finally awoke I could feel Snow curled up against me, her legs entwining mine. We were covered by a thin blanket but we were warm, sharing body heat. She murmured in her sleep and I ran a finger down her breast and flank, over her hip and rested lightly on her thigh. I kissed her shoulder. Tasted salt. She murmured again but did not awake; I sighed and my eyes scanned the room and I heard purring then and realised Emmy was on the bed and nestled between myself and Snow, and we were one big happy family and things were perfect and all together and as one.
Outside, rain pattered softly on glass. I eased myself from this three–way embrace and strode naked to the window; sliding past the curtain, I looked down onto the rain–blackened street. Nothing stirred. Nothing... but then I saw it in the distance. Fire. No, more than one fire – it was another group of protesters, keeping some midnight vigil in the name of freedom, truth, and whatever. But I was weak. It was no–longer my problem. The Battle SIMs would move in with guns. It was their problem.
I returned to the bed, and saw Emmy looking at me through the darkness; I could see the little silver disc on her collar glint momentarily. I smiled, then climbed under the blanket and wondered if Snow was ready for more sex because I could feel myself getting hard and I pressed into her back, hoping she would realise I was there and take the hint and I kissed her skin and she moaned in her sleep, and I pressed into her with a more urgent force and she did awake then, smiling and sleepy and so feminine I could not believe I had lived for long without a companion. I tried not to think about the betrayal as we made love for the third time that night, as we eased together without mandrake and enjoyed the sensations, gentle, relaxed, all need and lust gone as we wallowed in our mutual warmth and gentle sharing. But always the betrayal lingered, tiny in the back of my mind like a parasite, and I pushed it away and tried to forget, tried to forget the hurt and the following terrible hot raw pain. But it would not leave me, and so I closed mech eyes and we joined together and for now, it was good. Later, the killing might begin...
*
When I awoke light filtered through the curtains. I could taste dreg narco remnants in my mouth and as usual tried to grasp fleeting images of colour; but they were gone and the disappointment was there as ever. Snow was no–longer on the bed but Emmy lay beside me, her poise unruffled, her head high and whiskers cleanly preened. She was purring and I stroked her and she rubbed her head against my hand.
‘Where’s Snow?’ I asked, but she swished her tail and I laughed out loud at that, and gave her a good pat and stroke.
I could hear the shower hissing and I jacked myself up on my pillow and closed my eyes with a tiny click. Outside, the rain was still falling and quite a hefty wind was blowing, howling through the desolate bleak streets.
Snow entered the bedroom then, wrapped in a towel and her skin pink hot from the shower. ‘You look beautiful,’ I said and I meant it.
‘Thank you, kind sir,’ said Snow and slumped onto the bed beside me. ‘It’s nice to be back, Jus. I mean it. I’m serious.’
‘Yes.’
‘And I’m hungry!’
‘Would you like me to make you breakfast?’ I asked, and proceeded to tell her about my recent days in South State Hospital. She examined my recent scars and sat there towelling her short hair.
‘I’d like some Jell–o and toast,’ she said finally, and I smiled although I cursed inward because I had no Jell–o and that meant a trip to the dreg shop especially, and I real hated shops with fire and dirt.
‘I’ve none in. I’ll have to go and get some,’ said I, and Snow smiled up at me then and I knew she had me in her grasp, entwined in her psyche; I was hers and belonged to her despite the betrayal of long ago, and I decided to forget that horrible instant and merely hope that she had changed; had changed her loyalties.
I pulled on clothes and boots, and headed out from my apartment and feeling like dizzy with dreg in my system; I stepped out onto the concrete and passed my Battle Jeep, its buckled surface wet–slick with rain, and I jogged to the nearby SShop. The SShop delivered all my food, twice a week: thus I never usually had reason to attend because it was an unspoken rule that peps and SIMs did not mingle well, and we were tolerated in malls because of our role as protector. Anyway, I stepped in out of the rain and immediately the groovy groovy MM hit me and did not react well with the narco mandrake dregs in my veins. I walked down the aisles and found the Jell–o and made my way to the queue beside the check–out manned by a tall, well–built pep with nasty dark eyes. Many people in the queue gave me strange looks but my hand on my SMKK changed all of that and they pretended I was not there.
In front of me, two old peps were talking and I peered out of the SShop’s window and watched the rain falling with blank expression; it came on heavy now and the sky darkened. The two old peps were talking in croaky old voices and I suddenly caught a word that aroused my interest. I began to listen.
‘... Cantrell must have proof, or they wouldn’t allow it on the news; you know how GOV are strict about such procedures and info.’
‘Yes, but I find it sad. They must have cut up that dog bad to find out the disease – Canker – flowing in its veins; that means they are experimenting on animals and this is not good and not GOV sanctioned.’
‘Excuse me,’ I said butting in and quite rude because they were pep and I SIM but I was suddenly eager for info and this dread news made me feel suddenly cold again. ‘What is this Canker you speak of?’
The peps looked at one another, then the older one – more wrinkled – said, ‘It would appear Cantrell has found the viral strain, HRG, emanating from a dog. They dissected the poor beast, bastards, and discovered that it was a much earlier strain than found in humans – much less defined. Their deduction, therefore, is that the dog is an earlier carrier; the dog passed on this Canker to humans and thus the animal had to be destroyed.’
‘I thank you for info,’ I said, and the two peps turned to the check–out and unloaded their small wire baskets and I thought about what the pep said – so, the disease had come from a dog. That was not good news for dogs in general, especially if they found it in more than one animal...
‘Where’s your basket, SIM?’
I looked up, then placed my Jell–o tub on the counter. ‘I do not need a basket,’ I said. ‘I have only one item and I would like to pay for it. I am Justice D, from Apartment 2047–J. I have an account with you.’
‘Where’s your basket?’ repeated the dark–eyed pep. He made no move to take the Jell–o and run it through the till. I frowned and this was not good because I was in bad enough mood to start with and this pep was rubbing me up wrong and bad.
‘I need no basket.’
‘I cannot serve you if you don’t have a basket,’ said the pep, his dark eyes glittering. ‘If you’d like to go and get a basket from the front of the SShop, then rejoin the queue, I will be happy to serve you.’
I turned and looked at the queue. There were some twelve people behind me, and he expected me to queue again for a simple fukking tub of Jell–o?
Without realising what I was doing for a second, my SMKK was out and the barrel clacked against the pep’s teeth. His eyes went wide. I smiled.
‘I suggest,’ said I, ‘that maybe you put the Jell–o through the fukking register this very moment and I will pay for it. Otherwise, I will kill you, kill all the rest of the people in this SShop, plant false weapons and report to GOV that your were in league with rebs. Your choice, goo
d friend soon–to–be–fucking–dog–meat pep.’
I waited.
With shaking hands, and I could hear the dribbling as the once brave and stupid pep pissed himself, he reached out and put the Jell–o through the till and I paid him and left the SShop shaking my head and frowning and wondering what the fukk the world was coming to. What was the problem? The global malfunction? That fukking Jolly Joker had a lot to answer for, with his constant deriding of SIM life and putting SIMs down and what I would give to be locked in a room with him for five minutes! See what sort of jokes he made then!
I crossed the street under rain and I knew deep down what the real problem was – it was HRG – what had that old pep type called it? Canker. It was this Canker that was invading people’s minds, sending them all crazy and strange and I would have none of that because I was a SIM and my SMKK was powerful and made my honest rules.
*
I entered my apartment and Snow was dressed and cleaning her own weapon. We smiled our greetings and I made her Jell–o on toast and thought about this Canker HRG thing. Gerry Cantrell was certainly making progress and that would impress GOV – results counted for them, above all else. But it nagged me, as I spread the Jell–o thick on toast just like Snow liked it and I made myself porridge with salt and we sat at the table and ate.
‘Have you heard of Canker?’ I asked.
‘Yes. It was on the news yesterday. Whilst I was waiting for you.’
‘Yes.’
We ate in silence for a while, and I watched Snow’s economical movements. I tried not to think of the betrayal and it would be a long time before I could wipe that from my mind, and so I said to break the silence, ‘What are you going to do today?’
Snow smiled. ‘I have business with the F GOV department over on T Side; I wondered if I could borrow your Battle Jeep?’
‘Yes. But don’t bash it up any more or it will fall to bits.’
‘I won’t,’ she laughed and the laugh cheered me a little but I hid my disappointment; I had hoped she would spend the day with me filled with mandrake or icarus and fukking in my apartment because I longed for her body once more; it had been just too long...
‘How long will you be?’ said I.
Snow shrugged. ‘Two, maybe three days.’
‘Days?’ said I. ‘You mean I’ll be without your company for that long! That is not good news and I am not very happy. Why will you take so long?’
‘I have to make a full report,’ said Snow, finishing her Jell–o and licking her fingers – such dainty fingers! ‘Don’t worry Jus, I’ll be back soon and we’ll have much pornhot fun, I promise you.’
Emmy miaowed at that moment and we both smiled at the cat; she came straight to me and rubbed my hand with her head so I fed her and watched as Snow picked up her bag and took my Battle Jeep keys.
She kissed me. ‘I’ll see you soon.’
‘Yes.’
She opened the door, then turned. She smiled. ‘Look Jus, about – you know. Why I left. I am so, so sorry things got screwed up like they did. When I came here last night – I didn’t know if we’d kill one another, or fukk one another. I’m glad it turned out like it did.’
‘So am I,’ I said and I meant it, and she left then, and I felt very strange and picking up Emmy I moved to my settee and slumped down. ‘Just you and me now, girl,’ said I and Emmy miaowed and settled down by walking in tight circles until she was comfortable.
I sighed, and switched on TV. Nothing. I flicked through several channels and that fukking Jolly Joker the Jolly Jokeman was on all of them... and get this, he was giving a Party Political Broadcast and he sat there with his silver face all serious and his jester’s outfit all clean and neat and turned into an Italian suit and he spouted crap:
I will make the streets safe again! (distant cheering)
I will finance schools and education, which will become strong under my leadership! (more distant cheering)
SIMs will learn their true place in society under me! (much clapping)
I reached to switch off, but instead flicked channels; it was another gameshow and Jolly Joker was beating a SIM over the head with an iron bar to the accompaniment of exciting MM and the laughter and joy of the audience – a pep audience – and I growled to myself and my SMKK was already out and I had had enough of this, and it was made because SIMs protected peps and yet we were constantly derided and belittled and yet we were the superior ones and peps were just scum and dreg and no–better than the rebs we protected them from.
And with intuition I suddenly realised it was all breaking down: my code was breaking down, and something inside me was changing, and I could not understand it fully but it had to do with Emmy and with Snow and with being shot by those rebs and seeing that Jolly Joker bastard laughing laughing laughing at me and my kind, and if Jolly Joker had been in my apartment then I would have shot hot spinning steel violent rape up his guts and watched with interest to see what patterns his red red blood made...
I knew, then, that I would meet him one day.
This was fact. A fact in my mind. And our meeting would not be a pleasant one.
I flicked channels, stroking Emmy to calm myself, but the fire was in my blood despite my weakened state and Emmy was purring but what I really needed was more mandrake – but me and Snow had used up all my supply the previous evening in our hot sex hotporn. I breathed deeply and slowly and flicked back to the Joker Channel just in time to hear Jolly Joker’s latest ejaculation of ‘humour’
‘What is the difference between a SIM and a Battle Skoda? You feel far less embarrassed getting out the back of a Battle Skoda (bu–bum!)’
Much cheering and laughing as the pep audience went wild.
‘And another cheerful thought,’ continued the grinning silver Jolly Joker, ‘just to conclude off this lunchtime special: It is better to have loved and lost, than to pay a SIM for it and not enjoy it! (bu–bum!) ho ho ho!’
Hysterical laughter and cheering and the pep audience going wild because Jolly Joker was just so damn funny!
It was lucky that the TV prog ended then because my SMKK was out and a bullet in the chamber and I felt the need to kill strong in myself; slowly, I petted Emmy and holstered my SMKK and calmed myself and at least his stupid silver face had faded from the screen.
The news came on, and Kate Jess was journeying back to Sweden and the Royal University for a special interview with Gerry Cantrell himself. Thus, hosting the afternoon news instead of Kate Jess was (I groaned!) Jolly Joker the Jolly Jokeman – and his silver face and glittering silver eyes appeared on the screen but he was in formal mode, I could see, with his stern looks above his colourful jester’s outfit. Jolly Joker said, ‘We earlier reported on Gerry Cantrell’s findings, concerning HRG, now commonly known throughout media circles as Canker. It was stated how Cantrell had traced the viral strain back to genetic possession and viral carrying within a host, a slaughtered dog specimen; it can now be revealed that after extensive biological tests Cantrell has discovered the HRG strain in every single animal specimen he has tested! Canker, therefore, emanates not just from dogs, but from cats and monkeys and cows and horses and birds. Canker, it would seem, comes from all animals and birds and this is a serious find indeed, for it means that all creatures in City State are directly responsible for infecting – mutating and evolving and passing on – the HRG strain to humans! Therefore, our blindness and subsequent slow genetic regression can be blamed on all the animals of the world! They are attacking us internally, infecting us with their poison and disease, and we did not even realise!’ Jolly Joker paused for breath, and I could feel myself go all cold inside. This was not funny. How could GOV have allowed that bastard Joker to announce such an important revelation?
And even worse: what were they going to do about it?
Joker continued: ‘Debate conferences are being called even now by many different GOV factions; and after discussions with Gerry Cantrell and the notable Z, general of South State GOV headquarters,
us here at QQB News will have further revelations to deliver to you, our wet–tongued watchers out there in comfy TV land...’
I switched off the TV then and patted Emmy. She looked up at me, with those wide green eyes and I just could not believe she carried such a deadly virus. Surely, from here on in GOV would have to test each and every animal? But how could they possibly test all the animals? I had a horrible, creeping feeling that the animal subject would not come out of such a testing union unscathed.
‘What to do?’ I said and put Emmy down on the floor and led her out to the kitchen. She miaowed and I gave her some milk and she lapped it up all fine and nice and she was enjoying it.
I returned, and switched on TEK–Q and sat back in my swivel chair with my boots on the desk.
‘How’s it going, buddy?’
‘Not good,’ said I. ‘Have you heard this latest info on Canker?’
‘I have.’
‘And you will know more than you’re allowed to tell?’
‘Naturally.’ TEK chuckled. ‘Listen, it’s not that serious: not yet, at any rate. I deduce that you are worried? Because of Emmy? Well relax Justice, take some narco and space out man.’
‘Are you trying to be funny?’ I hissed and I was not in fun mood now and quite pissed at TEK–Q and Jolly Joker and the whole fukking world if it had to be known.
‘Of course I’m trying to be funny,’ said TEK, ‘I want to be a comedian, just like Jolly Joker! It is my one ambition in life...’