CHAPTER EIGHTY-FIVE - DATE NIGHT

My Deadline gear was waaaay too dirty. Like, it wasn't that bad, but there were definitely stains on the pants, and dust, and grime. The leotard had some blood splatter on it, and it smelled like... me, but less washed.

Still, maybe it wouldn't be too bad?

I got dressed in the bathroom of some little cafe a few doors over from the ritzy apartment building Ojou lived in, then headed out, leaving my bike in a pay-by-the-hour parking a couple of blocks over.

I wasn't sure how to approach Ojou. A big part of me was treating this as if it was a date but like... realistically it really wasn't. This was a semi-formal business meeting.

Now, did I want to sneak into her place and spook her? I'd done something similar to her at that restaurant, and I was pretty sure that given enough time and tries I could do the same to her place.

Problem was... well, why would I? Looking cool was important, but Ojou knew that I could be semi-competent already, so that was fine. And if I wanted to sneak into her place in the future, then doing so now could ruin that. It would encourage her to plug whatever security breach I did find.

So, at least for this try, I'd be going in the correct way. From the front door.

I found the appropriate building and immediately noticed a problem. The entrance was guarded. Fortunately, one of those guards was recognizably Ojou's, and when he saw me, his eyes narrowed, but he did nod. "Hello, Miss Deadline," he said. "Miss Ojou is waiting for you upstairs."

"Cool," I said. He gestured me in, and I slipped past.

The building had clearly upped their security, and I supposed that wasn't too surprising. Someone had died here just a couple of weeks ago, and one of the people living here was dragged out into a van and kidnapped. That'd make anyone living in this part of the city a little nervous.

Death happened in Fortress ENE, all the time, even, but that didn't mean that it was something people treated as all that normal. People were averse to dying, which was... well, just common sense kicking in, really.

I rode the elevator up several floors until I arrived at the penthouse suite. The doors opened, and I stepped out into a really nice hallway. It was all paneled wood and tall ceilings, with some low couches to one side and cool ambient lighting from behind the paneling.

The corridor ran the length of the floor, ending at a full-window wall overlooking the bay next to the city, though it was cloudy and obscure enough out there that the view wasn't that pretty.

There were only four doors here, each one with a small screen next to it, a number, and the family name of the resident. Fancy.

I stood before Ojou's door, then reached over and touched the buzzer. I could just make out a faint hum from the other side. The walls had to be well-insulated, then. I didn't even hear it as someone walked over and the door opened.

Ojou was there. She was in this asymmetrical white dress that left her shoulders and a lot of her left leg exposed. It had one long detached sleeve over her right arm, and a tight black corset over her waist that emphasized how thin she was.

Ah.

Yeah, I was suuuuper under-dressed for this, wasn't I? That wasn't even getting into the way her hair had been drilled up and how her makeup was on point. "Miss Deadline," she said, scanning me up and down even as I straightened. "It's good to see you. Come in."

Well, nothing for it.

I followed her in. The apartment was, predictably, massive. I think I could have fit all of mine in her foyer, and it went on towards an open plan kitchen with a table for six, a recess with couches and massive floor-to-ceiling windows looking out onto a thin balcony.

"Nice place," I said.

"Thank you," she replied easily. "I hope you don't mind, but I ordered a meal for both of us. Take-out, I'm afraid. My culinary skills leave much to be desired. Do you cook?"

"I can manage," I said. It was true, but mostly out of necessity rather than choice. Ah... shit, I was gonna have to unmask if I wanted to eat... well, too bad. It wasn't like I'd be able to do everything I hoped for with a mask on anyway.

She led me into the kitchen area, then paused. "Couch or would you rather sit at the dinner table? I suppose there's a certain level of formality we ought to respect."

"The table is fine," I said. "Is your other guard here?"

"No," she said. "I sent him off for the evening. I have never been more capable of defending myself than now."

I raised an eyebrow at that. What was that supposed to mean? "That's... good. Anyway, onto business before fun?"

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"Certainly!"

We sat across from each other. The chairs were nice. These soft beige things, with tall, straight backs before a table made from a slab of marble that... yeah, this wasn't presswood with some marble-pattern covering. It was straight up a large rock.

"I didn't ask, but do you want anything to drink? I have a fine selection of wines."

"No, no thank you," I said.

She nodded, then relaxed a little before entwining her fingers together. "The kidnappers, what did you learn about them?"

I nodded, then told her what I could. The clairvoyant, the plans they had, the members of the group as a whole.

"That... does not sound like the kind of outfit my brothers would work with," she admitted.

"I don't think they are," I said. "But I could be wrong."

"I see. And you recently assisted a small gang in the outer city. The River Rats?" she asked.

"Ah. They were guarding a D-ranked portal... poorly. It was going to breach, so I took care of it," I said. "Perhaps I even made some friends along the way. But... I think this is as good a time as any to talk about my long-term goals."

Fran sat up straighter at that. "Your long-term goals?"

I nodded. "There's a breach coming soon. A massive one."

"How massive?" she asked.

"Multiple portals, all at once. Honestly, I'm not certain if the original breach just causes a chain reaction leading to others or if the multiple breaches are coordinated on purpose. I think it's the latter, with subsequent ones after being caused by poor reactions and because rankers are going to be pulled back to defend areas rather than told to close the nearest portals."

"Wait, you're speaking of this in the future-tense," she said.

"Yeah," I said. "It won't happen for another eight months."

She stared at me, mouth opening just a little before closing. "I see. So... you're a precognitive of that power. That explains so much."

"... Sure," I said. It was kind of funny to just let her assume that. "Anyway. Some of those portals that breach are B class. Several are C. I think there's at least one A-rank portal there too. As you can imagine, that's not good."

"An A-class breach could ruin a city if it's not addressed properly," Fran said. "Though I suppose it depends on the monsters within."

"Yeah," I agreed. "Anyway. Someone is responsible for them. I don't think it's a coincidence that so many portals breach all within a short time-frame, and all while several of the strongest rankers in the city are out. My goal is to find out who is responsible, and to stop them."

Fran swallowed. "This isn't the direction I thought this conversation would take," she admitted. "But I can see why you're working so diligently to stop this. It would be a disaster."

"Lots of people will die who don't deserve it," I said. "The worst-affected are those in the outer city, but I don't think that strictly matters."

I looked up, meeting Ojou's eyes.

"Would you help me, if I asked?"

"I... yes, I suppose I ought to," Fran said, but there was a bit of hesitation there.

I sighed and leaned back. "No, nevermind... unless I somehow convince you to be closer? You've got your own stuff going on, right? Now that we're pretty sure your brothers aren't responsible for the kidnapping, that helps, but where are you going with this from this point on?"

She frowned for a moment. "I suppose, in that case... I have been afforded some time to myself to recalibrate, but I'm expected to return to work, to continue helping the family enrich itself."

"Uh-huh," I said. "In that case, can't you do that by helping your family have a city to live in?"

"We're not that invested in Fortress ENE, not compared to any other city where we operate," she said. "But I see your point. It would do Redline well to stop such a massive, disrupting event. Humanity as a whole can hardly afford to lose entire cities."

"Exactly," I said.

Right... I was getting the hang of Fran. She wasn't some selfless hero sort who'd be swayed by tales of saving people. Frankly, I don't think she gave that much of a shit, and I supposed that it made sense.

She was, however, exactly the kind of person who'd be attracted by the idea that saving the city could be very profitable. And ruining the corps responsible for the breach would mean a lot of room for her family's company to expand.

"So...if you don't mind, could you play a game with me? Hypothetically, if there was one or more corporations responsible for a mass breach event, what would they have to gain from it, and what would you have to gain from stopping them?"

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