Empire State of Mind

[Hiro Protagonist]

Five Days After Ikiru: To Live

"Gooooood morning, Tier Two! And for today's simulated weather pattern, we have partly cloudy in the morning, with light showers around noon, followed by clear skies to watch a beautiful sunset, this one sponsored by PepsiCo! And to kick off your day we've got some lovely tunes coming your way, on Core Radio!"

Hiro opened his eyes on the bed as the radio started to pump out futuristic synth music. He just lay there for a few moments, drinking in the rhythm and the volume. His side was healing amazingly fast, and all that remained of the wounds he'd suffered a week ago were just fading scars. 

Eventually he sat up in the bed, reaching for a small paper box on his bedside table that said "Sunshine Slims: Fine Herbal Deathsticks (Now With Zero Death!)". Omni be praised for cigarettes with no carcinogens. Apparently, it was some genetically engineered strand of herbs that they'd transplanted in the Vasty Deeps. The crop just soaked up the air and sunshine, and produced leaves that were more than suitable for smoking, and indeed, made clouds of slightly blueish, seaside scented smoke. Hiro enjoyed them far more than any other cigarette he'd care to have tried back home. 

Which reminded him, he was running out of both cigarettes and groceries. The reward for his capture of Joon Yi the Cleaver had provided enough funds for a month of rent in this apartment, plus enough to buy staple food supplemented with the occasional summoned meal. He was going to have to get a roommate to afford the rent though, or bag another bounty. Tier Two wasn't cheap, but since he was a Prime, Hiro figured he could afford to splurge a bit. Life was a little easier when you were in the Empire's positive book and had powerful abilities to boot.

He flipped a teal cigarette out of the package and lit it with a cheap plastic lighter, inhaling deeply and blowing a cloud of light blue smoke across the small room, perfuming the air with the scent of salt and sand. Heaving himself off the bed, he landed easily on his feet and started to get dressed. Couldn't go out in the street in his boxers, of course, so he pulled on a new t-shirt adorned with an eye catching swirl pattern and the words "I <3 Coruscant", in addition to a pair of blue, voluminous hachimaki. These he'd summoned himself. He'd picked up the T-shirt from a chintzy tourist boutique in lieu of his actual shopping trip, which he supposed might as well take place today. They had given him the stink eye until he ponied up some OM, given that he had been nearly shirtless and wrapped in bloodied bandages.

He'd spent most of the last few days just recuperating and browsing the Dataverse for job opportunities. The Empire kept an open list of public bounties, levied against those who had caused trouble in Coruscant. The Omniverse was starting to feel a lot like home, except better in a myriad number of ways. Sure, he was constantly monitored here in the city, but back home a simple laser scan could tell whoever was performing it what you favorite foods were, how often you picked your nose, where you lived, etc. In a way, the public surveillance here was less intense. He could take a four mile walk without having to steer clear of White Columns or any other Apartheid burbclave, or keep a hand on his sword in the Buy N Fly.

Picking up his gloves and goggles from a hook near the door where he'd hung them, he slipped both on and headed out of the apartment towards the elevator. A minute later and the droid doorman wished him a good day as he went through the spinning glass doors. He stood at the edge of the street, looking up at the greyish sky, hints of blue peeking out behind clouds, and stepped out onto the street, heading towards the nearest shopping complex.