Free Myth Gods Tech - Omnibus Edition: Science Fiction Meets Greek Mythology In The God Complex Universe by George Saoulidis

her.

Chapter
35
     
    I had
stolen the phone back from Prodromos. Well, stealing is a word that
does not apply when it’s already something yours. Repossessed then.
    On the
bus, on my way northeast, I was slapping the inactive phone on my
palm. I had taken out the battery, we don’t want any more of those
megahertz or whatever coming out of it anytime soon.
    It
didn’t make sense. Let’s accept that what Prodromos had said was
real for a moment. Why would a huge tech company like Hermes
Information Technology ship out a phone that triggers
hallucinations? I was certain my father didn’t know about any of
this. My daddy was perfect and I was his princess. Maybe someone
had added the stuff without the corporation knowing? It wasn’t
unheard of, it had happened before. Those back-doors by hackers or
whatever. Deppy would know better.
    Even so,
what was there to gain? Scaring people to death? Spreading
creepypasta? It’s not like it would help with sales, that’s for
sure.
    I was
staring at the road, people getting on the bus, getting off, the
same procedure, over and over. My destination was far away. I had
decided to go to the temporary headquarters of Hermes, a big
building in the Silicon Valley of Greece, in Gerakas. The town was
under Penteli, a beautiful hill filled with antennas that kept
getting torched by arsonists. For some reason years ago, a few tech
companies had set up shop there seeking cheap office-space, managed
to stay afloat and attracted new ones. Hermes, my dad’s job, was
staying there until their skyscraper in downtown Athens was
ready.
    I was
tapping the veil phone and biting my lip. I had to check it out for
myself. This thing would mess up with my life if it went on.
Prodromos might have been a religious nutjob, but her observations
made sense in a way. It wasn’t her fault that this whole situation
was crazy to begin with.
    I
checked my watch. Still had plenty of time.
    I
imagined what it would be like if I hadn’t, and Erinyes showed up
for me in the middle of the crowded bus. What would I have done?
Climb over people? Yell for the driver to stop? I’d look
insane.
    Was
I?
     
     
    Two
buses later I stepped off at Gerakas. The place was nice and green,
the roads were freshly paved and a silly self-driving car that
looked like a soap-bubble was zooming down the road. There were
open spaces of unused land right next to beautiful modern office
buildings. An international ad agency had a brick-red building with
a cursive typeface logo on it, and some smaller computer security
companies touted their sleek presence. It was a wild mix of country
houses and big office spaces.
    I hung
my schoolbag on my shoulder and walked towards Hermes
HQ.

Chapter
36
     
    “ Mahi?” my
dad said, coming to get me from the front desk security. He hugged
me and looked into my eyes. “Everything OK? Weren’t you supposed to
be at school?”
    “ Nai, one of the teachers was sick so they let us go early. I
came to bring this to your department,” I said, showing my inactive
veil phone.
    “ Alright. What about it?”
    I
shrugged and took on my most innocent face. “Dunno. Doesn’t work.
Figured you’d wanna know.”
    My dad
took me past security and we went to the R&D department. On the
way I put on a wide-eyed face on to cover up the attention I was
giving to security measures. Father was swiping his card on every
other door, cameras were staring down at us all the way, the
security men were looking bored but capable, not like the public
sector. I hadn’t decided yet if I was actually gonna help
Prodromos, but I wanted to see what was happening here. As we
walked, my dad was moving me along the way, opening doors and
pointing down busy corridors.
    We got
to a computer lab that was a mess. It was the equivalent of a mad
scientist’s lab, filled with computer parts, phones, testing
devices, monitors, and I kid you not, a robotic arm that was
welding one of those green electronic plaques with precision.