Page 379 of Light Leech

Petya: In a good way?

Ralia: I think so. We’ll see.

Petya: Pulse. Thanks again.

Ralia: Love yah, babe.

Naoma and Zhou were looking at me when I exited my neurospace. I hadn’t heard much conversing while I was focused on the messages but was sure there was something said.

“Are we going to talk now or what?” Zhou asked.

Naoma and I shared a conversation only our eyes could speak. It was simple and didn’t ask questions. It was the mere understanding of “I’ve got something important and I’ll tell you later.” She nodded.

I approached bim. “Yes.”

Zhou took a deep breath, though it did not calm his affect. “I said, how did Nichley lead you here?”

“Let me share the file we received. Open your neurospace for a handshake.”

“He doesn’t have one,” Naoma said. “He is one.”

He scoffed and shook his head. “Tap my temple and I’ll accept it.”

Looking up at me, I could see the subtle inhuman touches in his face that could lead someone to question just how human he was. His features weren’t perfect, which would have led me to question Naoma’s claim, had I not trusted her. The faint remnants of a scar below his right eye and the bags under his eyes were wise additions to an otherwise perfect and. Anyone without Naoma’s knowledge would find accusations that he wasn’t human preposterous.

I touched his temple and transferred the Beef2-brothel file to him, though I had since remained it with a nonsensical scramble of letters and numbers.

He started my hand away with a grunt as if it had stung him. “You zeggin–”

He stopped as the orca cried out. She pointed her tentacles through the doorway and moved close enough to crack its frame.

Zhou raised his hands. “I’ll be a good boy.” Frustration was still apparent in his voice. His eyes flashed in his neurospace a second later. “The whole zeggin’ palace, too?”

“So you can be as candid as we need,” Naoma said. “No need to worry about the boss watching over this meeting.”

“You’re not talking about Nichley, are you?”

“No,” she replied, though I wasn’t sure how sure she was. It made sense that Zhou could be a step below the Beacon tied to the largest entertainment company, but there were no rules saying that each Beacon had to represent a certain branch of society. With how much entertainment shaped our world. It would only make sense to have multiple Beacons controlling that vehicle.

“Good,” Zhou said. “At least you have some sense.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Is that a rivalry that I hear?”

“That shac would like my domain, but I digress. I despised him before, but even more now that he directed your mess towards me.”

I almost laughed at hearing the and before me calling something that had at least been human, a shac.

“He didn’t,” she said.

He furrowed his brow. “What do you mean?”

Naoma chewed on her lip. Her focused gazed showed how much thought she was putting into her response.

She went right for it. “Where do you fit in the Gongtide?”

“Where do you stand?”

“What do you mean?”