Ley City Runners - part III (final)

Four of them emerged from electronic portals rising from the ground, snarling in their programmed tone, robotic eyes flashing angrily. They were all sparking wires and clumsily bolted joints. The tranquil feel of the park evaporated the instant the relaxed families saw the cyberdogs and reached for their children, shuffling to safety while Astra swept Rigel up in her arms once more and broke out into a run.

The cyberdogs were after her right away, their ugly faces morphed in vicious attack mode. Sharp metal teeth threatened to rip into Astra’s legs if she slowed down. Her eyes cast about for anything that would give her inspiration for an escape plan. A branch, a hedge, a tower-

A tower. A transmission tower pole was perfect. Now she knew where she was running to, Astra’s speed picked up and she was going at full pelt towards the tower. The huge structure dominated an entire edge of the Sen Eugena Park with its intricate twisted metal features. It didn’t look particularly dangerous and that was the beauty of it.

Still running for her life, Astra was coming up to the transmission tower at an alarming rate and did not slow her pace. Approaching the tower, she hopped over the lowest metal bar and dipped her head, tucking Rigel close to her chest as she did so.
She was now moving inside the structure, weaving in and out of the bars until she was close to the other side. Careful not to let any part of her body touch the metal, Astra looked back in time to see precisely what she hoped to happen.

Cyberdogs weren’t known for their intelligence. They had run at the transmission tower like Astra had, although rather than avoiding the bars they had rammed into them with full force. Their exposed wires made a shocking impact on the tower – a voltage spike was the result, frying the cyberdogs with a surplus of electricity so their systems shut down. They were left lying on the ground, mechanic bodies in an electronic coma.

“Mummy, what was that?” asked Rigel, startled by the fritz he hadn’t seen. Astra remained silent, concentrating on getting them out of the maze of metal bars without touching any of them. It would be a shame to end up the same way as the cyberdogs when they were so close to their destination.

Twisting her body into shapes she didn’t know it could mould into, Astra and Rigel broke free of the transmission tower. Instead of putting Rigel down and letting him walk the rest of the way, Astra carried her son across the glass walkover out of the park to the neat outside platform of the Dyan building. It was only when they were by the front door Astra placed Rigel on his feet.
He looked up at her through questioning brown eyes, aware something was wrong but not old enough to understand what. Astra regarded her young son with all the love and warmth she had felt for him since the day he was born and hardened her heart towards her sentimental feelings. Logic had to win this round or neither of them would survive.

Crouching down beside Rigel, Astra fixed his jacket more firmly around his shoulders and wiped his leaky nose using the cuff of her sleeve.

“You’re going to stay with a friend of Mummy’s for a while, okay? I’ll pick you up soon as I can,” she said softly. Rigel pouted; he disliked being away from her.

“Where are you going?” he demanded. Astra planted a forceful kiss on his grubby cheek instead of answering him. Straightening up amidst a sniff, Astra rang the doorbell.

“Where are you going?” Rigel repeated louder. The door opened and Astra halted. A tall blonde man was standing at the door in a crisp suit far too stylish for someone as young as him. His shimmering blue eyes penetrated right through Astra’s idealised ending.

“Yes?” he spoke uncertainly, his deep voice reverberating in the depths of his throat. Astra made a smothered coughing noise to cover up her disappointment.

“Sorry, I made a mistake–” The man cut her off.

“It can’t be Astra Mink?” he said eagerly. Astra frowned and looked at him closer.

“You are Hesperus, aren’t you? What the hell happened to you?” Though her words were blunt her eyes were filled with cheer from a carefree time in her youth when skating and grades were all she worried about. Hesperus laughed.

“Puberty does do a lot for a guy. Well, that and laser eye surgery. I look like my father now, I know.”

“Fuck that; you look like a man,” said Astra. Hesperus grinned sheepishly at the compliment. More than impressed, Astra found herself attracted to the way her scrawny friend had matured. Rigel slipping his hand in hers reminded her she wasn’t there to flirt. The sound of approaching police sirens helped, too.

“It’s good to see you again, Hes. I ‘en’t got a lot of time to explain, but is it alright if I leave Rigel by you for a bit? I’ll come back and pick him up soon as I can.”

“What’s going on? Who’s Rigel?”

“Me!” Rigel announced the same time Astra said “My son.” Hesperus looked back and forth between Astra and the little boy: there was an obvious similarity of features. The sirens were getting closer; Astra wanted Hesperus to hurry up and say yes before they caught up.

“Are you in some sort of trouble?” asked Hesperus, noticing Astra’s injuries. Rigel too looked up at his mother, wondering why they had been running all afternoon. Biting her lip, Astra knew she couldn’t be truthful in front of her son.

“The less you know the better. Can you watch Rigel or not?”

“I’d do anything for you, Astra. I think I owe you a bunch of favours anyway,” said Hesperus at last, offering her a smile. Astra’s shoulder’s relaxed: the weight of worry lifted from her. She was content now she knew Rigel would be okay without her protection. Astra was almost convinced it would be comparable to her going on a little holiday and when she got back their lives would carry on with swift ease.

This unrealistic optimism was knocked out of her the instant a police officer knocked her to the ground outside Hesperus Lupe’s apartment. Rigel’s hand was wrenched from Astra’s grasp as the three officers in crisp black and gold uniforms battered Astra’s body, beating her using thick batons under the guise of an ‘arrest’.

“Mummy!” cried out Rigel, his pudgy hands reaching for her. Much as it pained him, Hesperus held the child back from the unwarranted attack. Hesperus himself had a stunned detachment to the situation. Surely whatever Astra had done wasn’t so bad that excessive force was necessary?

The police officers continued to lay into Astra, yelling things like “Citizen 50896, crime is not tolerated in this city” and “bottom-dwelling scum”. Astra’s screams of agony mixed among the despairing wails of Rigel and the silent horror of Hesperus. The blonde managed to recover his senses long enough to shield Rigel’s vision by hugging the child into his embrace when the officers brought out a TETAS. Temporary electronic thought alteration shot.

A long needle was shoved into Astra’s thigh and the purple liquid from the syringe injected into her body. The effects were immediate. Her pupils constricted and her muscles relaxed which led to the unfortunate yet common side effect of a total release in her bowels. The smell hit everyone within seconds, encouraging the police officers to take Astra away quickly.

They hauled Astra to her feet, slapped handcuffs on her wrists and led her away from the apartment. One officer looked back at Hesperus, still cradling a snivelling Rigel in his arms.

“Sorry for the inconvenience, Sir, we were just doing our bit to keep this city safe from criminals like that.  I hope you and your son enjoy the rest of your evening.” The officers left with Astra, too altered to glance back at her son for the last time in a long, long while.