Dorothy was an assassin of improbable accidents. She specialized in Houses, but had other tricks and devices. She made her living off of a loophole in the laws of The City.
Even though it was a simulation, The City was a real place. An avatar was fragile; subject to gravity, fire, trauma. And an avatar only had one life to lose. Dying in The City could be as financially devastating as anywhere on Earth. Of course there were no guns in The City, but Dorothy had her methods. On the morning Midas was sold, her email account crashed from overuse.
The City: 023: Dorothy
October 29, 2014
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The City: 022: Norbert
October 28, 2014
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Melinda turned to Camera Two.
“And now, I’d like to turn to International Finance expert Norbert Finkelmeyer. Good Morning.”
“Good morning Melinda.”
“What does this Midas deal mean?”
“It is effectively the sale of The City itself, because Midas Corp built and maintains it.”
“And why is that important?”
“Due to the hyper-realistic nature of The City, and the indulgent tax laws on the island nation where its servers are kept, Midas is the leading Financial Services firm in the world. Trillions of dollars move through the city every second.”
“What effect will this sale have?”
“We don’t know.”
The City: 021: Zophia
October 27, 2014
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Zophia set her spiders to work. Thanks to the anonymous email she received that morning, many were already prepared. They made their webs in every stock market across the world. And as the world spun and each woke up to the news that The City was changing hands, her programs feed on the panic. As the girl watched her bank accounts fatten, she almost felt bad for Sizemore, and the foolish little brokers who were watching their charges’ retirements slip through their fingers. Because they weren’t prepared. Later, she would have to back trace the message. For now, she fed.
The City: 018: Abner
October 22, 2014
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Abner arrived late to work. Even in The City, the trains wouldn’t run on time. There was still so much human error, still so few backup systems. And it had to be during rush hour. Of course in The City, it was always rush hour someplace. But naturally it was during his commute, on the day of his evaluation. He braced for a siren as he badged in. He was going to climb up to the 48th floor and kick someones teeth in. He froze in the lobby. “Sizemore Sells Shares to International Investors” was plastered on every monitor. Awesome.
The City: 013: Cleopatra
October 15, 2014
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Cleopatra watched the commotion in the train station with interest. She liked these kinds of gatherings. All the people, the noise, the chaos. This was why she was in The City. Citizens and Daytrippers ignored her, and she preferred it that way. All the better to watch them in their rushing patterns. The City was a different beast to her, and she knew all it’s hidden passages. Maybe that is why only Cleopatra saw the man with the smile frozen on his lips. Then he turned and quite impossibly, vanished. The little calico cat did not understand, but only watched.
The City: 012: Stepan
October 14, 2014
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Stepan watched the girl from his monitoring station at Door 37 of Midas Corp Headquarters. He could have helped her, but that would have meant leaving his post, and he would surely catch hell for it later. She was clearly a Daytripper, and thus below Midas’ notice. She was unsightly, but causing no disturbance. No orders had come down to remove her, so he was content to leave her.
Instead, he monitored his investments on a secure channel. He heard from Gina that The Man Himself had sold his shares. The sale was still secret, but what shockwaves would it release?
The City: 011: Xue
October 13, 2014
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Xue was feeding the ducks when she got Dawn’s message. She liked ducks. They didn’t build, didn’t destroy, didn’t do anything but swim and eat bread crumbs. Feeding the ducks was her favorite thing to do in the City. It was a meditation, a retreat from the pressure and demands of school and family. It was not that she was ungrateful. Her future was being formed like a diamond by that pressure. But too much and she would collapse instead.
She listened to it twice, gave up and ran the translation.
“Please come pick me up? I’m kind of stuck.”
The City: 010: Frank
October 10, 2014
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Frank was a train driver for The City. It was a good job, even if it didn’t pay well. It beat slinging burgers. It beat just about any job he could get Outside. And Frank’s options were very limited.
The crash had been, an accident. But after getting his ‘time to think,’ he understood that accidents weren’t just products of random chance, but bad decisions. One bad decision had cause so much suffering. At least in The City, he could still drive a train. He eased her into Commercial Station.
The woman stepped from the platform just ahead of him.
The City: 007: Emily
October 7, 2014
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The City was the center of the world, and Emily sat on the throne. At least, that is how she considered her desk at Midas Bank. The City, and by extension Midas, had become the world’s clearing house. Every day, billions of Dollars, Euros, Yen, Yuan, Pounds, and every other trading currency flowed through her gates, were converted to credits, passed through a few more hands, and left again. She logged the transactions and sped the bundles on their way. She didn’t know much about international finance law, but that wasn’t her department. She was certain everything was completely legal.
The City: 006: The Buyer
October 6, 2014
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Augustus watched the other man over their glasses. He was still smiling that damned Guy Fawkes grin. He’d never seen it falter, no matter how hard he negotiated. And he was just as good. A world champion poker player. And now the game was over. “So now that you’ve got my stake, what will you do with it?”
He set down his glass. “My backers think like you do. The City is an efficient way of concentrating capital. But I see it as so much more than that. There is so much potential here. I’m going to do wonderful things.”
Hugh J. O'Donnell 