The Kota

by Sunshine Somerville

  Loree made a face and sat up to wipe her brow with a towel. It was true she wasn’t thrilled with Nat, but Zaak argued the kid was useful. For Zaak’s benefit, she tried to hide her irritation.

  “What did Nat have to say?”

  “A Free Labs facility is opening in South Yor tomorrow afternoon, and the Dominion invited high ranking officials to the celebration. Free Labs was the leading researcher on the DRK virus, although the research was illegal. Now, the Dominion’s seized control and put an end to it. It’s too bad. The Dominion took over three months ago by gaining all the seats on the board. Cruelthor couldn’t do anything until now because the company would’ve lost stock value if he’s just stomped in and taken over by force.”

  Loree dabbed her face with the towel and was glad it blocked her knowing scowl from Zaak. She hadn’t told him everything about her old life.

  So Cruelthor finally ousted the citizen executives, she thought. I hope they only lost their jobs and not their lives.

  “Yeah,” she told Zaak, “I’m familiar with the company. Why do we care about this grand opening in South Yor tomorrow?”

  “Well, Nat told me that a woman came to the black market a few days ago in South Yor. She bought a week’s use of two ID tags with high level security clearances. The Free Labs opening gala is the only event in South Yor this week that requires a high level security clearance. That means this woman is planning to attend the Free Labs opening.”

  “So?”

  Impatient with her lack of interest, Zaak pulled the towel out of her hands. “So, the dealer had Nat handle the implants of the ID tags. When he removed her old one, he pocketed it to scan later – he’s a crafty bugger, so that’s not a surprise. Anyway, her brother was there too, to get the second tag. Nat said the guy was massive and kept Nat from flirting with the woman, who’s apparently a hot cha – Nat’s words, not mine.” Zaak rolled his eyes. “Anyway, Nat said he saw a strange, circular birthmark through the woman’s sleeve. Nat remembered how I’d asked him to look up a woman with the same Mark, so when he got back home he scanned the ID tag he’d swiped. It was attached to a dead account, but the name on it was Alex Collins. So, he reported her to me, thinking I’d be interested since she had the birthmark.”

  Loree looked at her brother with renewed interest. “You mean the Mark? He’s sure?”

  “Yes!” Zaak slapped her with the towel. “If we can get inside this bigwigs’ party tomorrow, we might find our missing Warriors!”

  Loree agreed and went with Zaak to prepare a vehicle. South Yor was a full night’s journey west on the edge of what had been the Gulf of Mexico, so they had to get moving. They’d take a hummer. That way, they’d have enough passenger room to bring back Alex Collins and her brother, who hopefully was also Marked.

  This could be quite the break, thought Loree. But it’s also super risky.

  Breaking into a normal Dominion establishment would be difficult, and Loree had no doubt the new Free Labs facility would be secured more than the norm. Cruelthor prized the DRK treatment above all else. Now that he had control of Free Labs, he’d take every precaution to protect its secrets.

  Well, big brother, she thought, we’ll just see if I can get into this little party. I’m not living in fear anymore. Once I find these other two Warriors, you’re going to regret ignoring the Elite’s advice to slay me.

  The next afternoon, Loree and Zaak were both tired from the night’s drive to South Yor, but the possibility of finding the missing Warriors kept them alert. They sat in their hummer across the street from the entrance to the new, towering Free Labs facility.

  Since the whole company belonged to the Dominion now, it was no wonder everything looked expensive and lavish. A courtyard separated the street from the building’s entrance gates, and statues of notable scientists from Free Labs’ history dotted the courtyard. Fountains shot colored water in dancing loops.

  A crowd mingled in front of the entrance gates as they waited to pass through the security scanners. Most of the people attending the to-do celebration wore clothes too expensive for common citizens. Clearly these guests were Dominion executives.

  Loree took a moment to prepare as she smoothed out her red, glittery dress. She looked in the side mirror, checked her lipstick, and fluffed the dark waves of hair that hung to her shoulders. Zaak, behind the steering wheel, fidgeted with the data screen he’d used to hack into the facility’s security system. Loree knew him well enough by now to detect when Zaak was antsy, and she put on a mask of confident as she looked out the window.

  I’m nervous too, she thought. But it wouldn’t do Zaak any good to know I’m not entirely positive I can pull this off. How can I find Alex Collins among the scores of women at this celebration?

  “Are you sure about this?” asked Zaak. He was so predictable. “I’ve hacked into the surveillance feeds so I can track you and delete any video of you or the Collins pair. But the security in that place goes way beyond cameras. Twenty Dominion operatives and twenty-five drones are stationed throughout the building. This main entrance and every floor inside has ID scanners and armed security drones. Their orders are to imprison trespassers, and they’ll factor anyone found guilty. On top of all that, armed patrol machines are scanning the exterior from the ground to the roof. I know you like roofs, but this one’s not an option for escape.”

  Loree smirked. He was worried about the easy part. “Well, this should glow.”

  Zaak stared at her. “I’m serious. Glow, chief, slay – please, drop the Youth slang. That screams all kinds of obvious. Are you sure you can do this? South Yor is the most Dominion-filled city in this region. What if an operative recognizes you? It might not matter if you invisibly make your way through security or not. One person who knows who you are is all it’ll take. You’ll be killed on sight if-”

  “Zaak, you had your little hacker friend look me up. You know there’s no profile on me. Cruelthor probably factored those poor dermatologists who didn’t erase their records of my Mark. Every record, picture, or surveillance video from my Dominion days was auto-wiped. I had my own team at the Capitol responsible for erasing any trace of me.”

  “But that was because Cruelthor was trying to hide you from me or anyone who knew the truth about you. Now that you’re out, don’t you think he’s rummaged up old photos to show to the assassins?”

  “There aren’t any.” She shrugged. “Trust me, no one’s going to recognize me. The only operatives I’m afraid of are the ones I’d recognize, and I doubt any of them will be here.”

  “You doubt?”

  She sighed and tried to stay diplomatic. “Zaak, I know you think it’d be safer to use your magic ID tag and find our missing Warriors yourself. But I’ll notice anything fishy sooner than you would. I’m not worried about getting caught. I was breaking into places with twice this much security when I was ten, you know. And it’s not like I’m defenseless – I’ve got my knife strapped to my thigh.” She patted her leg. “I’ll be fine.”

  Zaak still wavered. “You have a rather identifiable Mark – don’t forget, that is a way to identify you even in the Dominion files. If your sleeve should move and anyone saw the Mark…”

  “I will check my sleeves regularly,” she promised.

  He harrumphed.

  Loree climbed out of the hummer, looked back through the open window, and blew Zaak a kiss – not unlike what Eva would’ve done. With a smirk, she walked away.

  “I paid a lot for that dress,” Zaak called after her. “Be careful with it!”

  He’s so weird, she thought with a smile.

  Zaak drove off in the direction of the rendezvous point they’d arranged earlier. His job was to watch for her on the surveillance feeds, but hopefully he’d stay at the rendezvous.

  Loree put on her game face and walked across the street to the courtyard. Several others had just arrived in a hover limo, and Loree stepped into the growing crowd. She walked behind a statue and slipped into invisibility. It was then much
easier to make her way through the crowd, and she often moved right through the narrowest spaces between the well-dressed executives.

  Being in her dematerialized state was easy nowadays. It took so little concentration that she could examine her surroundings as she ignored the scanners and headed for the main entrance doors.

  “Why, Fellene, darling!” called a man to a woman back in the crowd. “You look ravishing in that Moeni gown!”

  Loree rolled her eyes and followed a pasty scientist-type inside the towering building, which was indeed newly constructed. The Dominion had done its best to make the scientific facility impressive. Loree knew Cruelthor’s tastes well enough, and she wasn’t surprised by what she saw as she entered an elevator unseen. As the glass lift ascended, she and the other passengers looked down at a greenhouse filled with flowers too temperamental to grow in the polluted region. An indoor waterfall cascaded from the top floor. The other people in the elevator ooh-ed and aah-ed.

  When they reached the appropriate floor, the elevator opened. Loree slipped out ahead of the executives and passed the oblivious scanners and security drones. Still invisible, she followed a group of executives into a grand hall. Here, display cases held various ancient artifacts – agricultural tools, computers the size of public terminals, paper books.

  Loree spotted the ladies’ restroom. She entered through the cracked door and materialized before walking right back out in full physical form. A man walked by and smiled, and Loree followed his group of celebratory executives to the end of the hall.

  They entered the breathtaking dining room, which was filled with hundreds of well-dressed guests. It appeared to be open seating, so Loree walked to a table near the back of the room and chose a seat so she could face the entrance. She sat and continued to gaze around, pretending to enjoy the splendor.

  This place’s glitz wouldn’t have bothered me a few months ago, she thought. All I ever knew growing up was the wealth and prosperity inside the Dominion. On undercover missions, I always thought the underprivileged citizens I encountered were of the minority or else outright criminals who didn’t deserve any better. Then I met Zaak…

  Early during her re-education, Loree had traveled with Zaak on a tour of the Continent. Finally she’d gotten her first good look at how oppressed the citizens really were. Seeing the world from the other end of the scope had changed her views. Now, whenever Loree entered a Dominion facility like this one, she felt a fresh surge of satisfaction over Zaak’s ability to take Cruelthor’s own kronar right out from under him.

  A woman in her early seventies wearing a ridiculous hat interrupted Loree’s musings as she and her husband sat at the table. “Hello.”

  “Good afternoon.” Loree smiled politely.

  “I’m sorry, but I don’t know many Free Labs people,” said the woman. “I’m Mary Lou. This is my husband, Orson. And you are?”

  “Loree. I don’t know many people either. Where are you from?”

  “Lived in South Yor all my life.” Mary Lou adjusted her enormous hat. “You?”

  “I live in Havanahell.”

  “My, that’s hours east, isn’t it? I hear it’s cooler over there this time of year. Oh, it must be so nice to live on the east coast with all that fine air off the ocean! We have so much pollution here. And it’s so dreadfully humid.”

  “Yes, it’s definitely hotter here.”

  Loree looked around the busy room. She didn’t see any women who matched the vague description Nat gave Zaak. ‘Hot cha’ was not helpful, for one thing. But blond, petite, young, single… Most women here were older or else young but attached to a man’s arm.

  Much to Loree’s disappointment, Mary Lou prattled on. “Of course, you might have less pollution in Havanahell, but I can’t say I care too much for the abundance of common citizens. I visited Havanahell on a shopping excursion once. It’s a nice enough metropolis, I suppose. Very glib, if you like that kind of thing. But I much prefer the stillness and class of South Yor.” The tone was meant to kindly put Loree in her place.

  Oh, no you don’t, lady, thought Loree.

  “I don’t know,” she responded with a shrug. “Personally, I think Monaco is the nicest place I’ve ever lived. There’s so much history, and the city is lovely. Of course, it’s hard to afford a trip across the ocean to the Mainland nowadays. Ever been there?”

  The older woman’s hands froze over her hat. “No, can’t say as I have.”

  Orson, who’d previously shown no sign of listening to his wife’s conversation, now chuckled under his breath. He stopped drumming his fingers long enough to eyeball Loree. “Wow, she’s beautiful,” he said as if Loree couldn’t hear. “A little too buff for me, but she’s got a nice face. Gorgeous eyes. Good hair. Mary Lou-” to his wife “-remember when you were kind of pretty like that?”

  Mary Lou did not look amused, and she elbowed him before returning to her hat.

  Loree winked at Orson.

  “So,” he said with a geriatric, flirty smile, “did I hear you say you lived in Monaco? Did you work at the original Free Labs facility there?”

  “Yes, I did,” Loree answered with pep. She was always happy when whatever she was talking about helped her cover.

  After several minutes spent in conversation with the senior citizens, a slim blonde in a blue dress tripped beside their table and collided with a chair. She laughed at herself, and her quick apology’s slight accent suggested she was from the northern region. The woman was in her mid-twenties, Loree guessed, but she was younger than Loree. She was quite pretty. Loree noticed her wide, innocent smile and suspected the young woman had no connection with the reality Loree knew, but there was also a tenseness in her expression. When the embarrassed woman regained her composure, she looked at them with a nervous swallow.

  “Are you okay, dear?” asked Mary Lou.

  The blonde nodded. “Is this seat taken?” Her hands shook as she held the back of the chair between Loree and Orson.

  “No,” he replied with delight. “Have a seat, my dear.”

  Loree eyed the newcomer. The woman wore a sleeved dress despite the fact that it was the middle of summer and they were in the hottest city in the region. Looking around, Loree noted that she and this woman were the only two in the room with sleeves. Loree knew well why she herself wore sleeves. Was this slender blonde also hiding a Kota Mark?

  “What’s your name?” Loree asked as she reached out to shake hands.

  The blonde took Loree’s hand and faced her for a moment with the same probing look she’d used to scan the crowd. Complete surprise came over her expression. She moved her lips, but no sound emerged as she fumbled for words, wide-eyed.

  A telepath? thought Loree. Well, well…

  Laughing, she continued to shake the blonde’s hand tight in order to keep her from bolting. “You’re Alex Collins?”

  The blonde closed her gaping mouth and nodded.

  “That’s what I thought,” said Loree. “It’s nice to finally meet you. Out of curiosity, how old are you and your brother these days? You do have a brother, correct?”

  Alex Collins regained her composure enough to speak. “Twenty-five. I’m twenty-five. My brother is twenty-two.”

  Loree smiled as she did a quick sorting of ages in her mind. “Well, I’d say that drops you right into the spaces I need filled. Do you know what I’m talking about? You know, that…job I’m sure you’ve read about?”

  “You mean the proph-” Alex stopped when Loree made a face signaling her to keep quiet. She looked right at Mary Lou and Orson before facing Loree again. “Oh… I mean, yes. My brother is around here somewhere. I’ll find him and come right back. He’d love to meet you…to talk about that job.” She rose and left the table, clearly forcing herself to remain calm.

  Loree chuckled as she watched Alex disappear in the crowds.

  Seems nice, she thought. A little naïve, but nice. That was easier than I could’ve hoped!

  As Loree turned back to the table, she hea
rd a laugh behind her and froze. She thought for a second that Zaak’s paranoia had gotten to her, but then she heard the laugh again.

  Oh, no, no, no, she thought. This can’t be happening! Don’t panic. Assess the situation. Drones are crawling the hall out there – fourteen when I came in. If I leave, I won’t be able to reconnect with Alex. Staying here, on the other hand, could mean trouble. What is he doing here? I knew this would come back to bite me!

  But she had to stay at the table, so Loree decided to stick it out and hope for the best. Her luck didn’t improve as the laughing man leaned against the chair Alex had occupied. Turning her head a few degrees, she saw Jett Chase.

  He was laughing with a circle of men, facing the other direction. Loree inspected his face only a second before turning away again, but he looked basically the same as she remembered. He had the same blue eyes and dark hair, and his physique was still fit. His suit looked expensive, and she smelled a cologne few citizens could afford. The hand that rested on the back of the chair beside her had a wedding ring.

  Also, he’d trained his voice to lose its accent. “Is this seat taken?” Jett asked Orson. He had yet to look at her, apparently.

  Orson did nothing to help her plight. “Well,” he mumbled, “there was a nice blonde, but she left. Have a seat, Mr. Galcon.”

  Loree mouthed the last name and looked the other way as Jett sat beside her. An eternity later, she heard Mary Lou trying to bring her into their conversation. Loree angled toward them but kept her face turned away from Jett. She tried not to look at him, but he was directing a question at her. She hesitated a moment, then turned her head fully. The moment she faced Jett, he recognized her.

  “Meegan Hunt. Pleased to see you again,” she said with a fake smile. She shook Jett’s extended hand, which had petrified in the air.

  Mary Lou made a face. “I thought you said your name was-”

  “Yeah, whatever.” Loree stood. “Mr…Galcon, was it? I trust you remember me?”

  Jett regained use of his limbs and stood from his seat. “It’s been months, but how could I forget? Why don’t we go to my office?” He offered her his arm, and the instant she took it he pinned her hand to his side and led her from the table.