Read Online On Galaxy's Edge: Ascendance by Alex T. Kolter - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Alex T. Kolter
Ads: Link
making themselves look respectable, and not like they had just come from a cave. Talyah was finding this harder than the other two.
“I don’t see why the women in the Scrapers dress like this, Nero. I can hardly move my legs, nor my arms. How am I meant to fight anyone wrapped up like this?”
“I don’t think people in the Scrapers really think about hand to hand combat, Tal,” Nero replied, amused. “Anyway, at least yours is relatively simple. Look at all this elaborate stuff on my jacket...”
“Where did you get this stuff anyway, Nero?” Nate asked, who was admiring his getup.
“I, uh, commissioned them from a clothes shop. I gave them some instructions from what I’d seen Scraper people wearing. They did the rest,” Nero admitted.
“Maybe you’re in the wrong job, Nero. Ever thought of designing clothes?” Nate asked.
“Very funny. I had hardly any input.”
“Still, you didn’t do a bad job...” Nate conceded, turning around to try to get a look at his back.
Talyah interrupted them. “When you’re done admiring yourselves, we’re nearly there.”
“Okay,” Nero said. “You remember who we’re supposed to be, yes? We’re investigating an augmentation for my mother, yes?”
“Yes, Nero,” they both replied in unison, exchanging amused glances with each other.
The ship was set on autopilot, and as they approached the Scraper, it circled in to the top of the building, where there was a waiting pad for them to land on. As they descended, they could see a couple of guards emerge from the roof entrance, ready to escort them in.
“I hope this works,” Nate said, as the ship touched down. The ramp at the rear of the ship descended, and the three of them walked out onto the top of the building. Taking a quick look around, they could see far into the distance, almost able to spot the mountain range from which they’d emerged that morning. Looking closer at hand, they could also see vast distances across the city, though the other massive Scrapers, some even taller than the one they were standing on, blocked a lot of their view.
They walked the few metres from the ship to the entrance of the building, approaching the guards as if they had every right to be there, and the guards were just a minor inconvenience.
“Can I see your IDs, please?” one of the guards asked. Nero held out his hand. As with the clothes, he had prepared some earlier, buying fake IDs for all of them. These ID chips were embedded in rings they wore on their fingers, so they each waited for the guard to scan their rings. Nero’s heart beat a little faster as they waited, and watched the guard. He hoped the fakes were as good as he was told they’d be.
A few nerve-wracking moments passed, before the guard’s small scanner thankfully flashed green. “Welcome to Scraper 5,” he said. “I hope you have a pleasant stay.”
Acting as if he hadn't expected any other result, Nero confidently strode through the automatic doors, followed closely by Nate and Talyah, and entered the majestic building. Or at least, entered the lift, which was still very impressive. As the doors slid shut, the three of them studied the inside of it, impressed at the ornate white-metal panelling that covered the walls.
“Nice,” Nate commentated, afraid of saying anything more in case they were being monitored. Nero glanced at him, but didn’t bother replying.
The lift descended a couple of floors before slowing down, the doors sliding silently open to reveal a grand entrance foyer. They stepped out, pausing momentarily as they were struck by the design. In front of them was an incredibly long and wide corridor, almost large enough to fly their shuttle down, leading away from four lifts. Just visible at the far end of the corridor was an information helpdesk, which served as the point of entry for visitors to the building.
The three of them made their way to that desk, their footsteps echoing ominously in the bright confines of the
“I don’t see why the women in the Scrapers dress like this, Nero. I can hardly move my legs, nor my arms. How am I meant to fight anyone wrapped up like this?”
“I don’t think people in the Scrapers really think about hand to hand combat, Tal,” Nero replied, amused. “Anyway, at least yours is relatively simple. Look at all this elaborate stuff on my jacket...”
“Where did you get this stuff anyway, Nero?” Nate asked, who was admiring his getup.
“I, uh, commissioned them from a clothes shop. I gave them some instructions from what I’d seen Scraper people wearing. They did the rest,” Nero admitted.
“Maybe you’re in the wrong job, Nero. Ever thought of designing clothes?” Nate asked.
“Very funny. I had hardly any input.”
“Still, you didn’t do a bad job...” Nate conceded, turning around to try to get a look at his back.
Talyah interrupted them. “When you’re done admiring yourselves, we’re nearly there.”
“Okay,” Nero said. “You remember who we’re supposed to be, yes? We’re investigating an augmentation for my mother, yes?”
“Yes, Nero,” they both replied in unison, exchanging amused glances with each other.
The ship was set on autopilot, and as they approached the Scraper, it circled in to the top of the building, where there was a waiting pad for them to land on. As they descended, they could see a couple of guards emerge from the roof entrance, ready to escort them in.
“I hope this works,” Nate said, as the ship touched down. The ramp at the rear of the ship descended, and the three of them walked out onto the top of the building. Taking a quick look around, they could see far into the distance, almost able to spot the mountain range from which they’d emerged that morning. Looking closer at hand, they could also see vast distances across the city, though the other massive Scrapers, some even taller than the one they were standing on, blocked a lot of their view.
They walked the few metres from the ship to the entrance of the building, approaching the guards as if they had every right to be there, and the guards were just a minor inconvenience.
“Can I see your IDs, please?” one of the guards asked. Nero held out his hand. As with the clothes, he had prepared some earlier, buying fake IDs for all of them. These ID chips were embedded in rings they wore on their fingers, so they each waited for the guard to scan their rings. Nero’s heart beat a little faster as they waited, and watched the guard. He hoped the fakes were as good as he was told they’d be.
A few nerve-wracking moments passed, before the guard’s small scanner thankfully flashed green. “Welcome to Scraper 5,” he said. “I hope you have a pleasant stay.”
Acting as if he hadn't expected any other result, Nero confidently strode through the automatic doors, followed closely by Nate and Talyah, and entered the majestic building. Or at least, entered the lift, which was still very impressive. As the doors slid shut, the three of them studied the inside of it, impressed at the ornate white-metal panelling that covered the walls.
“Nice,” Nate commentated, afraid of saying anything more in case they were being monitored. Nero glanced at him, but didn’t bother replying.
The lift descended a couple of floors before slowing down, the doors sliding silently open to reveal a grand entrance foyer. They stepped out, pausing momentarily as they were struck by the design. In front of them was an incredibly long and wide corridor, almost large enough to fly their shuttle down, leading away from four lifts. Just visible at the far end of the corridor was an information helpdesk, which served as the point of entry for visitors to the building.
The three of them made their way to that desk, their footsteps echoing ominously in the bright confines of the
Similar Books
