Free Plaguelands (Slayers Book 1) by Jae Hill Page A

green tower,” he said toward the ocean, but obviously intended for me. “He has an electronics lab where he can work something to disrupt your friend’s neural web. You’ll leave your taser with him for payment. And then Alistair will take you back to the city.”
    Then the old man turned around and walked toward me, extending his hand.
    “Again, I apologize,” he said. “I didn’t intend for things to get out of hand. I do wish you the best of luck. And should you ever decide to take me up on my offer to provide me a great-grandchild, please return.”
    I stood from my chair, shook his hand cautiously, and gathered my things. I rubbed my cheek as I walked out of the room; it was swollen and split from the impact of the board. I hoped my skull wasn’t fractured. I left the room and, in the hall, stopped to apply some Mitocaine from my pack. It was both a pain-relieving topical crème and a gel that caused cells to regenerate instantly. Instantly, I felt better, but it would take a few more applications for the pain and damage to completely subside.
    I made my way to the green tower across a rickety skybridge. I instantly found Henry’s lab, where the nice middle-aged man instructed me on how to disable a neural web. Apparently, I wasn’t the first person to venture to Old Vancouver to ask the question. He quickly built me a small device, the size of a phone, which would automatically login to Semper’s neural web, hack it, and disable it. I gave him the taser as payment for his services, and as I left the room, I saw him playing with the gun as if he were shooting imaginary villains in an old movie.
    The boat ride back to the capital was a silent affair. Alistair barely spoke a word to me, probably embarrassed about the situation in Ebenezer’s office—or possibly upset with me that I hadn’t complied with the old man’s wishes.
    As he wheeled the boat to the dock in the capital, I jumped ashore and he handed me my bag.
    “Thanks for the ride,” I said politely. “It was nice meeting you.”
    Alistair smirked, “No, kid: you never met me.” He threw the boat into gear and raced away toward the grey horizon.

EPIC TRAVEL
    I crept through the freight yard, picking my way between the shiny metal mag-lev trains. When in operation, they hovered a meter above the track, giving a smooth and seamless ride at over four hundred kilometers per hour. When powered down, the trains simply rested on the track.
    Giant forklifts and towering cranes hoisted metal crates into the waiting cargo holds of the trains, destined for destinations across the western hemisphere. Most of the population of the Cascadia Republic is centered on the capital, but there are resource and research outposts as far north as the Arctic Ocean and as far south as Patagonia. Also, equipment and bulk commodities are sent as far south as New Guayaquil where they are shipped to the space elevator for export to other planets. The capital freight yard is the largest hub for all human commerce on the planet.
    I picked my way among the loading docks until I found a blinking marquee indicating that a particular train was bound for Yellowstone. I found an open cargo door and jumped inside the car. I climbed through the dark and crawled between some crates marked Research Supplies to find a cozy and isolated hiding spot. I lay down my backpack and used it as a pillow. The door closed a few minutes after I found my spot, and the interior became completely darkened.
    After an hour or so, I heard the humming of the track being energized. The train slowly and imperceptibly lifted off the ground, then began creeping forward. It took five or so minutes for the train to depart the freight yard, and then it rocketed to full speed in only a few seconds. The gentle hum of the train soothed me and I fell asleep on my backpack, expecting to wake up in Yellowstone.
    The train decelerated from its top speed and the change in G-forces awoke me from my nap. My watch showed