Page 38 of Light Leech

Regardless of the guilt on our hands or Nichley’s, Kuni was robbed of a childhood. We could do our best to nurture but saving us showed enough of his maturity. His hands were still in their webbed form, sparking with light in case he needed to pacify Sanna again.

“I didn’t know you could use your light on tech like that!” Boyband patted Kuni’s back.

The kid smiled. “It was the same when delivering light to the Lord of the Sea.”

“Gong. The bad guy, not what he told you to call him.”

“Oh yeah, sorry.”

Boyband patted him again. “You’re good, du.” He cocked his head at Naoma. “So, was that white serpent thing real?”

She shrugged. “Somewhat, I guess. It probably looked different in the vision. Maybe Denji will have some answers when we get back?”

“Doubt it. That shac sounded like he had no idea what he was doing. You think Ral will be able to read this lady’s neurospace without her mod functioning?”

“Sanna’s not a shac,” I said. “If we need to use classic forms of interrogation, we can.”

“My mod isn’t working well either, if that’s what you mean.”

“I shook my head. We’ll remain as humane as possible, but this is the second assassin with horrific mental powers. If we have another coming our way with gui-like power, I’ll do what I have to.”

“Kuni’s shocks can be a pain if he doesn’t go far enough to knock you out.”

I shook my head, then looked at Kuni. “You’ve already done enough, bud.”

“I want to interrogate her, too!” he argued.

I shook my head. He might have to fight, but I wouldn’t make a child torture someone. He had been desensitized enough. I had tainted my soul before and would continue to do so if it meant sparing the smallest spark of a child’s innocence. “You can help us keep her out on the way back to the monastery.”

“We calling in Denji or a risking a skyride?” Boyband asked.

“Denji–”

Naoma cut me off. “I’ll pay for a premium skyride.”

“I don’t want to risk anything,” I said.

She smiled. “The elites all have their secrets. Pay enough in violet lumens and you can get a fully automated skyride barred from questions or monitoring.”

“I’m not trusting that,” Boyband said. “Privacy died in the virtual era.”

“You forget that I’m still connected to my Reef royalties,” Naoma said. “Security exists if you’re wealthy enough and I’ve got a long while before that account empties.”

Boyband raised an eyebrow at me.

I looked at her. “You sure? No questions asked?”

She nodded. “When people worshipped me, it was the only way I could get around. Reef did all they could to ensure my privacy. One company leaked my location and Reef paid them their dues, if you plug. Threats make fine security. We found one line of skyrides that only the most elite use. Fix programmers, pharma elites with more enemies on their back that lumens in their account, and so forth. Trust me?”

I smiled. “Always.”

Chapter seven

Neurocrawler

“Who the zeg is that?” Ralia asked as Boyband and I dropped the stunned Sanna on the tatami floor of one of the monastery’s back rooms. Arabasia’s influence on the Republic made the mat hardly an odd choice of flooring.

Denji leaned over to look at the woman, but kept his distance as if Sanna was a rotting corpse. He looked up at Boyband, disgust crinkling his nose. “Did you off one of your old teachers?”