02-04-2018, 12:16 PM
The silicon samurai cruised to a stop on the elevator to Tier 2, sipping on a large, carbonated beverage. He'd made a short pitstop for some refreshment, surprised at the amount of Imperial Credits still in his account. He'd apparently been drawing a salary while on vacation, so he'd splurged on the "Turbocharge Special. Crammed with nutrients, vitamins, and organic stims, he was feeling refreshed and quenched. He'd also picked up a pack of his favorite cigarettes, Sunshine Slims. Turquoise smoke drifted lazily up into the exhaust vents as the elevator descended downward.
The journey down took less than a minute, and Hiro knew his progress was being monitored by the many camera. Good. He was making good time, which was sure to read well on his re-entry approval. As a small point of civic patriotism, he spotted a routine patrol of troopers about to begin their shift. Throttling the bike's whisper-quiet engine, he coasted behind them for a few blocks as an honor guard as they proceeded further into the Tier. Compared to the hustle and bustle of upstairs, it was almost quaint. He followed them for as long as their paths coincided, then pulled off onto a side-street. The EPD Fastlane wasn't an amenity down here except for main roads, so he pulled in behind a bright yellow cabbie.
Still, this was above Tier 4, so traffic was a non issue. Just a constantly moving line of maglev vehicles and hovercars, politely gliding forward about their business. One perk of the regime on the upper levels. Safety in a place like the Omniverse was precious, and if being part of the system meant you got the leeway he'd been given, then Hiro was A-Ok with being an "Imperialist" as the Camelot folk had called him. He'd seen the other side of the coin, and it was not fun.
Pulling up in front of the apartment complex, Valtheim Towers, he was bemused to see it was almost an exact copy of his own complex. As he walked in, the droid greeter turned from the desk and nodded politely. "Mr. Protagonist. Welcome."
Hiro paused momentarily. "How do you....oh, I see. Networked with the other droids in the system, right?" The droid nodded. "For regular tenants, yes. However, your identity profile comes from the EPD database. How to serve our Empire if you do not recognize it's agents? Indeed." The droid pressed a button, and unlocked the elevator. "Please go right up, sir. I will notify 5E you are en route."
They knew his destination, too. Eh. Not too different from back home, not at all. It was comforting. Hiro had been used to constant surveillance, although back there it had been used to constantly push products and services on him. Here, the advertisements were regulated, highly personalized, and overall relatively unobtrusive. The surveillance in this case only had the purpose of making his job easier. Perfectly agreeable.
".....am I a fascist?" Hiro said out loud on the way up, before adjusting his goggles in the shine of the polished chrome. "......nah." He decided, just in time to see the elevator doors open into a hallway. Proceeding down the door, he adjusted his rather worn clothing and tucked in the EPD badge he had pinned to his shirt. Raising his hand, he knocked three times on the door.
"Colonel? Or other occupant? It's Hiro Protagonist. I'm here to collect the package."
The journey down took less than a minute, and Hiro knew his progress was being monitored by the many camera. Good. He was making good time, which was sure to read well on his re-entry approval. As a small point of civic patriotism, he spotted a routine patrol of troopers about to begin their shift. Throttling the bike's whisper-quiet engine, he coasted behind them for a few blocks as an honor guard as they proceeded further into the Tier. Compared to the hustle and bustle of upstairs, it was almost quaint. He followed them for as long as their paths coincided, then pulled off onto a side-street. The EPD Fastlane wasn't an amenity down here except for main roads, so he pulled in behind a bright yellow cabbie.
Still, this was above Tier 4, so traffic was a non issue. Just a constantly moving line of maglev vehicles and hovercars, politely gliding forward about their business. One perk of the regime on the upper levels. Safety in a place like the Omniverse was precious, and if being part of the system meant you got the leeway he'd been given, then Hiro was A-Ok with being an "Imperialist" as the Camelot folk had called him. He'd seen the other side of the coin, and it was not fun.
Pulling up in front of the apartment complex, Valtheim Towers, he was bemused to see it was almost an exact copy of his own complex. As he walked in, the droid greeter turned from the desk and nodded politely. "Mr. Protagonist. Welcome."
Hiro paused momentarily. "How do you....oh, I see. Networked with the other droids in the system, right?" The droid nodded. "For regular tenants, yes. However, your identity profile comes from the EPD database. How to serve our Empire if you do not recognize it's agents? Indeed." The droid pressed a button, and unlocked the elevator. "Please go right up, sir. I will notify 5E you are en route."
They knew his destination, too. Eh. Not too different from back home, not at all. It was comforting. Hiro had been used to constant surveillance, although back there it had been used to constantly push products and services on him. Here, the advertisements were regulated, highly personalized, and overall relatively unobtrusive. The surveillance in this case only had the purpose of making his job easier. Perfectly agreeable.
".....am I a fascist?" Hiro said out loud on the way up, before adjusting his goggles in the shine of the polished chrome. "......nah." He decided, just in time to see the elevator doors open into a hallway. Proceeding down the door, he adjusted his rather worn clothing and tucked in the EPD badge he had pinned to his shirt. Raising his hand, he knocked three times on the door.
"Colonel? Or other occupant? It's Hiro Protagonist. I'm here to collect the package."
![[Image: MZSDl2O.jpg]](https://i.imgur.com/MZSDl2O.jpg)