Company Ink

by J. A. Cipriano

  “Actually, they don’t have anything to do with the Medallion. They’re working with me on something else, but I’ll explain that in a few minutes,” I said as I led her toward the group and started introducing people.

  Shelley moved around the room, smiling and shaking hands, exchanging greetings with everyone. When I’d gotten all the names out, she came back toward me and regarded me with interested blue eyes. “So, what is it you all are working on?”

  “Well, it’s a little complicated,” I told her. “The first thing you have to know is how I was able to help Peter’s daughter, offer to pay a billion dollars for this place, and pay your salary. There isn’t exactly a way to ease into this, so I’ll just come out and say it.” I smiled, knowing there was no way she’d believe me the first time I said it. “The thing is, I have a magic pen.”

  To her credit, Shelley didn’t laugh, get angry, or threaten to call the men in white coats to take me away. She simply raised a sculpted eyebrow and folded her arms.

  “A magic pen. Really,” she said. “Well, I have a stable full of unicorns.”

  “Impressive,” I said, playing back with her for the moment. “I guess you’re one up on me because I can only make real things happen with the pen. Maybe you’ve got a few dragons and griffins in there, too?”

  She laughed. “Yes, exactly. I also have a fairy godmother and a coach made out of a pumpkin.” She cocked her head slightly, then looked around the room and back at me as her smile faded. “You’re serious, aren’t you?” she added after a moment. “At least, you think you are. And your team believes it.”

  “They believe it because it’s true,” I said as I pulled a folded piece of paper from my pocket and handed it to her. “This is what I wrote in the conference room when Peter left.”

  She took the paper cautiously, like it might bite her hand, and unfolded it slowly. “Vera Loman’s medical treatment works and she … wakes up from her coma,” she read aloud, her voice losing strength as she got toward the end of the statement. She stared at the paper for a long moment, and finally glanced at me. “That’s impossible. You’re saying you can just write anything, and it comes true?”

  “Not anything. Only things that could actually happen, that really exist,” I said as I took the paper gently back and tucked it into my pocket. “Like, I can’t make people fly or shoot lasers from their eyes. But I can make it possible for someone to build the technology to make that happen.”

  “And this is a thing you’ve done. Had someone build you flying technology with laser eyes?” she said with a huge dash of skepticism.

  “Yep. That’d be me,” Cami called out. “I’m the mad scientist around here. It’s not built yet, but I’m working on it.”

  “She’s already made a bulletproof bodysuit, and a whole bunch of other cool stuff,” I said as Shelley continued to stare at me. “But I’ll tell you what. Let me give you a practical demonstration so you can see I’m telling the truth. Do you have a dollar bill on you?”

  Shelley frowned, but she produced a slim wallet from her suit jacket pocket and fished out a dollar bill. “I don’t even know why I’m entertaining this idea. I guess it’s because you didn’t actually seem like a crazy person. But really, what are you going to do with this?” she said as she held the dollar toward me.

  “You hang onto it, so you can see it’s not a trick,” I said with a grin as I got out my pen and a fresh piece of paper. “I’m about to give you a bonus.”

  Before she could ask any more questions, I wrote, Shelley is holding a hundred-dollar bill.

  “What kind of bonus?” she said, trying to look at what I’d written.

  I nodded at her outstretched hand. “That kind.”

  She glanced at the bill, and her jaw dropped as she pulled her arm in for a closer look. “Um. That’s …” She held the one-turned-hundred up toward the overhead light, revealing the color-changing security strip and the hidden image of Ben Franklin in the corner that marked it as genuine. “Holy shit,” she blurted and then clapped a hand over her mouth.

  I couldn’t help laughing. “Trust me, I’ve heard worse language. And I definitely won’t fire you for swearing.” I smiled. “So, do you believe me now?”

  Shelley nodded slowly and lowered her hand. “I think I’m starting to understand what your team does,” she half-whispered. “Security, right?”

  “Something like that. But really, we’re more like family,” I said, deciding to leave the harem relationship out of it for now. That part wasn’t so easy to understand for an outsider, and at this point, Shelley was still a little on the outside. “Anyway. What I’d like to do now is … well, basically enhance the skills you already have. I’m not into changing people without their permission, so that’s why I had to tell you the truth and let you decide what you want for yourself.”

  “You mean, like, make me the best casino manager in Vegas?” she asked quizzically.

  I grinned. “How about the best in the world?”

  “Absolutely!” she said without hesitation, grabbing my hand with excitement. “I mean, I’ve wanted this job for as long as I can remember. I already thought it was amazing when you gave it to me, but this …” She broke off with a gusty breath and a smile. “Yes, please. I’d love that.”

  “Your wish is my command,” I said as I started writing.

  25

  “This really looks amazing,” I said to the construction foreman as we finished touring the sections of the base that had been completed so far. “I mean it. You guys are doing an incredible job down here.”

  The foreman, Kyle Hendricks, grinned and rubbed the back of his neck. “Hey, no problem. With what you’re paying us, it oughta look like the fucking Taj Mahal, know what I mean?”

  “This is even better than the Taj Mahal. It’s perfect,” I said, looking around once more at the vast living area with multiple entertainment centers, private rooms, and hallways leading to bedrooms. “And I’ll tell you right now, there’s a fat bonus in it for all of you if this is done by the projected completion date.”

  “You got it, Mr. Stevens,” Kyle said, his grin widening as he shook my hand. “I’d better tell the rest of the crew. A bonus on top of the fortune you’re already shelling out? They’re gonna love this.”

  I watched him go with a lingering smile. My team and I had spent the last week relaxing, living large, and enjoying everything the Medallion had to offer, and then some. There’d been a ton of fantastic food, plenty of shopping trips, and even some culture and live entertainment. Not to mention lots and lots of sex. I’d made sure every one of my girls had been satisfied many times over. And of course, I had plenty of enjoyment myself. It was a nice change from fighting off armies that were trying to force the pen away from me, and such a far cry from what my life used to be, I could hardly believe it.

  Best of all, Cami and the others had the new suit ready for testing. I wanted to test it out in the amphitheater, which was one of the last areas the construction crews would complete. Right now, it was still basically a gaping hole in the earth with drilling machines scattered around the perimeter, making it the perfect place to try out the suit’s functions and destructive capabilities.

  I had a feeling I’d need to actually use the suit soon. The command I’d written about Canada was fading, slowly but surely. And unless I could think of something else to hold him off, Presley would be coming for me again in the near future.

  Only this time, we’d be ready for him. In fact, I wasn’t planning to wait around for him to attack again. I intended to find him first and bring the fight to him.

  I headed back up to the fifth floor to let everyone know it was time to move down into the base. As I stopped at everyone’s suite, I let them know the new security access codes for the entrances. Once the base was completed, I’d talk to Cami about the possibility of inventing some kind of force field in addition to the security locks and thick steel walls, just to make damned sure no one else could bust into the place with gia
nt drill machines, or any other kind of brute force.

  I grabbed Cami and Marty in the hallway, in the middle of all the moving activity. “Hey, can you guys come with me for a bit?” I said. “I want to try the suit out while there’s still unfinished space in the base.”

  “Sure, let me just go get it,” Cami said as she glanced into the suite behind us, where Ronnie was packing a few things to take downstairs. “I think Maggie and Felicia were going to help me get the lab equipment packed up, so I’ll just ask them to start without me. Be right back.” She headed down the hall toward the conference room where they’d been working.

  Marty smirked as he watched her rush off. “You know, she’s already started building a second suit based on her prototype,” he said, shaking his head. “I don’t know where she gets all that energy. The woman just never stops.”

  “Yeah, she’s definitely energetic,” I said as I thought back to last night, when Cami and I had enjoyed some quality time in the suite after everyone else had turned in. We’d christened every single room, including the kitchenette.

  “I’m not sure I want to know what you’re thinking about,” Marty said, nudging me with an elbow. “Man, I hope this contraption of Cami’s works. We really have to find this guy and stop him before he attacks us again.”

  “Everything Cami’s made has worked so far. I don’t see why this one wouldn’t.” I shrugged. “And don’t worry. We’re going to find Presley. I’ve got Skye digging around online and hacking into every surveillance system in Vegas, keeping an eye out for the bastard.”

  Marty nodded. “Good call. I just hope we find him first, you know?”

  “Yeah, me too,” I said as Cami came bustling back down the hall, carrying a black backpack in her arms.

  “I really think you’re gonna love this, Roger,” she said as she thrust the bag at me. “Here, put it on.”

  “I hope you don’t expect me to suit up right here.” I laughed as I took the backpack and started putting my arms through the straps. It wasn’t nearly as heavy as I thought it would be.

  “Nah. I just want you to see how it feels,” she said, watching me eagerly.

  “Okay, sure.” I shrugged the backpack into place, and as it settled on my shoulders, the straps adjusted automatically to fit just right. The slight weight of the pack seemed to vanish as it balanced itself. “Wow, this is sweet!” I exclaimed. “Feels like I’m not even wearing anything.”

  Cami pumped a fist in the air. “Yes! That’s exactly what it’s supposed to feel like,” she said as she grabbed my arm and started steering me toward the elevators. “Come on, let’s get downstairs. I can’t wait to see this thing in action.”

  Marty tagged along, hustling to keep up with the pace Cami set, and we rode the elevator down to the basement level. I’d had Restricted Access signs put up on the doors leading to the wing with the entrance to the base, and a numeric security lock installed. I entered the code, and the doors popped open. Behind them was a short hallway, and a left turn brought us to the huge, vault-like door leading into the base.

  “Remind me that I want to have a handprint scanner put in on that main door so all of us can open it,” I said as the massive steel door swung shut behind us.

  “Oh, that’s a great idea! I need to write that down,” Cami said as she produced a pen and notepad. “I can totally upgrade the suit with biometrics, so only you can use it, Roger.”

  I grinned. “That’d be awesome.”

  After a quick stop around the current construction area to let the foreman know there’d be extra people down here moving things in, we made our way to the amphitheater. The place was still a wreck, but there was plenty of space to move around in and a bunch of heavy-duty moleman machines to use for target practice.

  “Okay, check it out,” Cami said as we stopped in the center of the vast room. “Everything is voice activated, including the suit. Just say ‘suit up’ to put it on, and then ‘shut down’ to pack it back in.”

  “All right, I’ll try it,” I said, nodding. “Suit up.”

  I couldn’t exactly see what was happening, but I felt the backpack changing shape and spreading. Within seconds I was encased in the same type of bulletproof black polymer that she’d used for the skintight suit, but it was breathable enough that it didn’t flatten my clothes against me. The stuff didn’t cover my hands, feet, or head. Then there was the faint sensation of something moving all over the outside of the polymer. I held my arms out and watched as what looked like a bunch of metal plates swarmed all over the suit, building a loose shell of segmented armor. The plates formed rough gloves and boots, and then started to stack up in front of my face and over my head to create a helmet.

  For a second or two, I was enclosed in complete darkness. Then blue lightning crackled across the surface in front of me, leaving a smoked glass eye slot that gave me full visibility. I watched as the electricity surged through the rest of the suit, fusing the segmented armor into a sleek black, solid surface with pneumatic joints in all the right places. Whatever the electric charge was, it wasn’t hurting me any.

  Something flashed to my left, and I watched as a holographic text display just inside the helmet announced SYSTEM ONLINE with a blinking cursor after it. Within seconds, SYSTEM ONLINE changed to a small readout in the corner that showed my body temperature, blood pressure, and pulse, and the current temperature inside the suit, a comfortable 65 degrees Fahrenheit.

  “This is fucking awesome!” I exclaimed as I extended an arm and flexed my fingers, watching the articulated finger joints of the armor move smoothly. “Can I still get to my pen the same way?”

  Cami grinned and nodded. “Try it.”

  I did. When I motioned for the pen, a small hole lensed itself open in the palm of the right glove and the pen shot out to land neatly in my fingers. “Oh, that is sweet!” I said as I flicked it back and watched the pen disappear the same way.

  “Yeah, this baby has a lot of built-in sensors,” Cami said as she trailed a hand along the arm of the suit. “It should respond automatically to most things you want to do. And before you ask, the plasma discharge won’t hurt you. That was a positive electrical charge to fuse the nanites into a solid shell. When you deactivate the suit, it floods with a negative electrical charge to break them apart.”

  “Oh, man, this thing is bangin’. I want one,” Marty said as he stepped closer to inspect the suit. “You know, you kinda look like Robocop. The reboot version.”

  “Cool. I definitely need to check this out in a mirror,” I said as I flexed my knees, turned in a circle and took a few steps. Movement was easy and fluid. In fact, it still felt like the suit weighed almost nothing. “And it’s bulletproof, right?”

  “Completely. Even the eye slot,” Cami said as she reached up and rapped her knuckles on the helmet. “Nobody’s getting through my baby.”

  I nodded. “What about weapons?”

  “Oh, that’s the fun part,” she said. “You’ve got concussive blasts, pulse lasers, and thanks to the nanobots scavenging the surrounding environment, guns with nearly unlimited ammo. Plus the rocket booster.”

  “Rocket booster?” I said, raising an eyebrow even though no one could see my expression.

  “Yep. It won’t let you fly, exactly, but you can lift off the ground and stay in the air,” Cami explained. “I was going for a balance between power and control, to make sure you can move around easily while you’re airborne. The suit’s too compact for a really powerful booster. Go ahead and try it, everything’s voice activated. Just say ‘rocket booster’.”

  “Rocket booster,” I said. There was a kind of whooshing sound behind me, and I started to rise slowly from the ground. The motion was smooth and stable, and I stopped automatically to hover around seven or eight feet in the air. “Holy shit! This is amazing, Cami,” I said as I waved down at her and Marty. “Okay, I’m gonna try moving around a little.”

  I leaned forward like Superman, and the suit propelled me forward. I moved slo
wly at first but accelerated evenly until I was flying at over thirty miles an hour. Faster than even Usain Bolt could run, but not so fast that I couldn’t focus on what was happening around me.

  That was when I noticed I was flying straight toward a wall.

  I turned my body instinctively and the suit moved with me, smoothly changing my course. It was so easy to steer, it was almost like the suit was reading my mind.

  “This is great,” I called as I flew around the room, trying a few twists and mid-air flips. “One question, though. How do I land?”

  Cami laughed. “Say ‘land’.”

  I did, and I felt the engine of the suit power down slightly as I began to lose a little altitude. I got my feet under me in plenty of time to touch down, and the rocket booster turned itself off. “That’s really ingenious,” I said.

  “Of course,” Cami said. “The commands are really simple. It’s blast, laser, or gun. Once you have a weapon armed, you can just push your hand out to fire.”

  “Got it. I’m gonna try them out,” I said as I turned toward one of the drilling machines. “Blast,” I said, and a yellow targeting reticle appeared inside the helmet. I grinned as I sighted the operating turret of the machine and pointed my hand toward it as I opened fire.

  I felt the energy surge through the suit and push out. The concussive blast hit the turret dead-on and half-crumpled it with a tortured scream of metal. “Damn, that has a lot of power,” I stared at the ruined turret. “Okay, let’s do another one. Laser.”

  The targeting reticle turned blue. I focused on the turret again, and this time when I gestured with my arm, a beam of blue energy shot from my hand and blew the remains of the turret off the machine.

  When I switched to gun, white lightning crawled around the right glove of the armor. As the glove started rearranging itself, the interior black polymer shell extended to form a skin-tight glove, and the armor formed a handgun that rested in my palm. “Now that is a cool trick,” I said as the targeting scope turned red and I sighted the side door of the drilling machine.