Metropolis - Goldilocks: Wing-E / Block 5 | Room 0812/5826

Friday, May 15th, 2089 | 6:44am

It was no surprise that Chris hadn’t been able to sleep the night before. She’d tossed and turned in bed until, hours into the night, she heard Tiny sigh above her. At that point, Chris knew she’d better quiet down, lest Tiny decide to have a problem with her as well. Ever since Chris left the cafeteria the day before, she’d been afraid of her own shadow. Instead of seeing women in familiar jumpsuits, she’d seen sadistic criminals and murderers walking down the halls. If both Doris and Yaz had the exact same psychotic glow in their eyes, it wasn’t too far-fetched to think that it was a convict commonality. Chris wondered if she was the only truly sane and innocent person in the whole prison. Then she remembered the saying, “Everyone is innocent in prison” and began doubting herself. Could it be she was a criminal and didn’t know it? Was she just as psychotic as the rest of them?

She felt herself spiraling out of control and decided to take a reduced dose of melatonin, which is how she found herself awake precisely one minute before her b-link was set to buzz her. Instead of waking up fresh and well-rested, it felt like there was a boulder resting on her chest, constricting her airways. Not even able to take in enough air for a sigh, Chris checked her rank.

[5453/5791: Pending Review]

No change. Obviously no change. She hadn’t played any since she’d checked it last, the night before. However, she couldn’t help hoping against all hope that she’d make rank somehow. The hope should have died a long time ago, along with all of her hopes and dreams concerning her own personal safety and that of her sister’s, but Chris just couldn’t let it go like that. Sid had mentioned something about being able to petition her case to the Warden. She didn’t think the woman, unable to become a player, had reason to lie to her, but after Yaz’s display of insanity the night before, perhaps rationality was too much to ask for.

“BARBIE!”

Chris whirled around at her roommate’s yell. She’d never heard Tiny raise her voice. The bodybuilder of a woman didn’t need to; her voice carried quite far without added volume. Tiny’s voice was still echoing off the walls when Chris understood the she-hulk must have been trying to get her attention for a while. Chris found herself lost in thought, looking at her own image in the sink’s shatter-proof holographic mirror. Her reflection showed a toothbrush in her mouth, one she didn’t remember picking up, but as her hand automatically continued its circular brushing motion , she must have been doing it for quite a while. After rinsing her mouth, her gums felt numb and she wondered how long she’d been at it. It was already 6:58.

Chris wasn’t sure if Tiny would still be willing to escort her to breakfast this morning and paced in front of the door, wringing her hands while her thoughts still stormed around the subject of her rank and meeting with the Warden. She needn’t have worried – about Tiny, at least. Less than a minute later, Tiny was ready and left the door in her usual fashion. Chris fell into step beside her and Tiny didn’t say anything. Chris kept her head down and tried to stay focused on the present. There were people who wanted her dead in the prison and it was in her best interest to keep a calm and level head through it all. She tried her best, but before she knew what had happened, breakfast was over.

Blurred by worry and self-doubt, Chris didn’t even know who she’d sat down next to. She couldn’t even tell if her snippets of memories at the cafeteria table even belonged to this morning. Every day was the same: they woke up, got fed, went to game, came back, ate and went to bed. Sure, the duds got more ‘variety’ when it came to their daily prison routine, but the players had even more if you took Era activities into account. Chris wondered what she’d do when every day started blending into the next like it had that morning. Each meal the same, each day the same. She shuddered at the thought. She needed to make rank, not only so she didn’t get shanked, but to stay sane. If there was one place that could offer her variety in this hellhole, it was Era.

Worried about her conversation with the Warden, Chris didn’t even notice when she got herded into a line of convicts.

“Hey… Chris…”

Lost in thought, Chris looked around, trying to find the source of the voice. The woman behind her glared at her when she turned around so Chris quickly looked forwards, only to see Tanisha looking back over her shoulder at Chris. Her bruised friend looked at her with pity, as if Chris were the one who needed it in that moment.

“You okay, girl?” Tanisha whispered.

“Yeah…” Chris answered uncertainly as she finally took note of where they were going.

“Where are we…”

Tanisha smiled kindly, and Chris once more felt like she was being pitied.

“We’re going to see the Warden.”

“Oh…” Chris looked around and saw them go by the last possible entry to the Capsule Bay Area. They continued on to a gate division posted with two guards. Chris hadn’t seen many guarded divisions in Goldilocks, but she was pretty sure it was her first time noticing a double guard since her arrival. The lead-guard swiped them through and the moment they passed the gates, all the convicts’ b-links beeped and changed from blue to yellow.

All of the women in their group started murmuring amongst themselves until the guard called them to attention. That’s when Chris first realized that they all must be new convicts just like her and Tanisha. Her spine stiffened, and she wondered if Yaz was amongst them. Chris swallowed and craned her neck to the side, trying to make the girl out in the line ahead of her. Not being able to spot her, she turned her head and was about to scan the line behind her when the guard called her out.

“You there!”

Chris cringed.

“5826! Back in line!”

Chris bowed her head and hoped no one paid her any attention, but soon she heard whispers all around.

“… the Barbie one…”

“… the one that?”

“Yeah, Yaz isn’t—”

“Yaz!? Who cares about her, I heard that Anna—”

“I SAID SHUT IT!” the guard suddenly yelled when the whispers started becoming more than whispers. “Fuckin’ Fish,” Chris heard the guard mutter none-too-quietly.

From then on, only the footsteps of two dozen or so women were heard. Chris looked around at the virtual scenery when it switched from a tropical jungle scene to an arid desert. Instantly, she thought of Era and how any other day, she would have been there at this time. She wondered if she ever would again. Biting her lip, Chris didn’t pay much attention as the line made its way past two more guarded stations before they came to the [Administrative Wing].

The group of fresh inmates were all taken into a plain, rectangular room with a single row of chairs on each side. Each of them was directed to take a seat. After that, their guard spoke.

“You’re to wait until you’re called. Sit still, don’t speak and don’t move.”

It was clear some of the convicts weren’t happy with the ‘explanation’, but before they formed any words, the guard pressed a button and thin wall divisions slid out of the wall to separate them. Chris had been sitting next to Tanisha, but after the division came out, she couldn’t even see the woman anymore. All Chris could see were a few women opposite her, but even that was taken gone a few seconds later, when a cover came down over her head until she was encapsulated in a bubble. Before she could panic or become claustrophobic, the virtual settings kicked in and she was back to seeing her rotation of soothing landscapes.

Admiring it, she felt oddly homesick when a prompt popped up on the ‘wall’ in front of her.

[Fill out this optional questionnaire. Your answers will determine your waiting time. Thank you for your participation.]

Chris stared at it for a long moment, not sure of what to do. In all of Suerte’s preparatory advice, he’d never mentioned any kind of ‘questionnaire’. She hadn’t heard any of the women mention it either, but after yesterday, she wasn’t sure they would have either. Biting her lip, she considered the prompt a moment longer until a word finally jumped out at her.

‘Optional.’

Nothing in prison was optional. Chris accepted the questionnaire and started answering the questions. At first, she was worried about what questions it would contain, but when it asked her her name, age, her family, her background and then her thoughts about the facilities, she relaxed, thinking it was just another of those company questionnaires people used to find out what your buying preferences were. She’d filled a lot of them out in her life. Chris didn’t really see what the point of answering one in prison was, but continued until she found herself answering questions about the prisoners themselves.

“What is your roommate's name?”

“What is your roommates ID?”

“What table do you sit at in the cafeteria?”

“How do you feel about the food?”

“Are the people at your table usually the same?”

“If so, then who?”

Chris stopped answering and sat back. There was no way of knowing how many questions there were. As soon as she answered one, another would appear while all the previous ones remained. Chris could see all of her answers and knew that none of them were giving away any information that couldn’t be found through her b-link. In fact, when Chris thought about it, there would be very few answers it couldn’t answer. If the device really did record everything like the women claimed, then nothing was really secret.

Chris’ brow wrinkled in thought. What did they want from this questionnaire? She checked the time and saw that she’d been answering questions for over half an hour . She had no way of knowing if the other women had already had their turn; all she could hear or see was the virtual scenery around her. Currently in a prairie she’d tagged as a favorite, she took a moment to think. Her suspicions were aroused, but she wasn’t yet sure if there really was anything questionable going on. She decided to see what would happen over the next couple of questions just to be sure.

“How do you like our Capsule Bays?”

“Did you have an Era account before coming to Goldilocks?”

“How has your experience in Era as a convict been?”

“Have you met any other convicts in Era?”

“Are any of them from Goldilocks?”

“If so, then who?”

Chris was sure. There was something really fishy about the questionnaire. She didn’t like the idea of seemingly innocent questions that were evaluating her in some deeper way. If the Warden wanted to test her, he could do it in person where she could see his face while he did it. Annoyed she’d even answered as much as she had, Chris opened her Era guides and started skimming them to cool down. Over the last week, she’d gone from reading complete beginner guides to now a specialized review of every single race.

After her encounter with Yaz in game, she didn’t want to suffer again because of a lack of information. She focused on learning all she could about classes and races. Chris wasn’t stupid; she knew that if Cazcade hadn’t underestimated her and if Aya hadn’t been somehow miraculously been able to use one of the Fire-Kin’s race attributes against Cazcade, Yaz would have beaten her to a pulp. Wishing she had her notebook from the game to take notes, Chris could only open a file and select out the portions she thought were most important.

Time passed with no change. At first, she didn’t notice how long it was taking, but when minutes became hours, she started to get antsy. She’d been in there for over four hours! It was no wonder her bladder was already getting very irritated at the situation Chris had put it in. As time went by, it only got worse. Chris wondered if they were going to give her lunch or starve her until she had her meeting with the Warden. All of these thoughts were going through her head until it finally occurred to her that the man in charge of the prison was probably doing it on purpose.

Taking a deep breath, Chris calmed herself and tried to meditate. It had never really worked for her before. She’d always end up getting annoyed at not being able to completely clear her mind, but being annoyed at her own shortcomings seemed like a better idea in that moment than being annoyed at the Warden who she was supposed to ‘keep an eye on’. Chris sighed. She really needed to use the restroom. The capsule automatically regulated her temperature and hydration levels, and she found yet another reason why she wanted to be back in game instead of cooped up in a little bubble waiting for who-knew-how-long until she got to speak to the Warden.

Chris took a deep breath and tried her hand at meditation again. She could feel herself walking straight into a trap, but she couldn’t help thinking about it anyway. Had all the other women answered the questionnaire? Was she going to be the last one to talk to the Warden? Her answer was soon answered when the bubble around her suddenly came down. Blinking in surprise, Chris could only stare at the guard in front of her for a while before the guard spoke.

“Lunch-time.”

Chris checked the time: 12:05pm.

The guard handed her a nutri-pack and, not for the first time since Chris had arrived at Goldilocks, she wanted to turn it down. However, it was the first bladder-instigated occurrence.

“I… ah…” Chris started awkwardly, not sure how to ask to go to the bathroom.

The guard frowned before she rolled her harsh, dark eyes, shoved the nutri-pack in Chris’ face and said, “Down it and I’ll find ya a john.”

Chris nodded and quickly did as she was told. The guard was clearly annoyed at the situation, but Chris didn’t mind it one bit, not as long as she got to pee. Relief spread through every inch of her body as she made her way back to the waiting room. She was starting to feel silly for ever having considered the psychological warfare until she saw all the other ‘waiting-bubbles’. In her preoccupation with finding a bathroom, she hadn’t noticed before, but the women were clearly visible from the outside. Having been in one for hours, Chris knew that they weren’t able to see out. Chris frowned when she realized that she didn’t recognize a single woman in the whole room. Turning her attention to her empty spot, she looked to the left of it, expecting to find Tanisha. Chris’ face drained of blood; it was Yaz.

Chris stumbled and made her way to her waiting spot without a word. She knew that the bubbles were sound-proofed, but she didn’t want to alert the girl to her location. In the back of her mind Chris knew it was stupid. She was being heavily guarded and was safer here than anywhere else in the prison, but she still couldn’t help feeling her mouth go dry and her body go cold with fear.

Taking a seat, rational thought caught up with her and she realized that Yaz definitely knew who was sitting beside her. After all, the bubbles were see-through from the outside.

So much for that. The Warden was definitely trying to psych her out, but to what end? Had he found out about Suerte somehow? In fact, what exactly was there to know about Suerte? Chris knew the lawyer had ‘contracted’ her, but what exactly was his end goal? Did everyone know more about… everything than her? Was she just a pawn in everyone’s game? Who else was involved?

Chris’ thoughts spiraled out of control and for a while, she was unable to stop it. She’d prided herself on being the calm and collected sister ever since their parents died, but now… all Chris wanted to do was curl up in a dark corner somewhere far away from the world and just cry. Her hands were shaking and her breath was erratic. She could feel it and was sure the b-link could too. Chris choked out a laugh. At least the Warden would know he’d accomplished his goal, so maybe now he’d finally get the conversation over with.

Controlling the urge to punch her bubble, lest Yaz hear it, Chris merely gazed at the changing landscape until her breathing calmed down. She tried to picture herself in the different environments and maxed out all the sensory settings. The fragrances of wet dirt and wildflowers, salt water and sand, pine trees and mulch helped her relax until she was finally able to open her guides again to kill time. If the Warden wanted to make her wait all day, she might as well put the time to good use. Who knew, maybe the good student routine would convince him to let her play?

What seemed like an eternity later, Chris was calm again. She’d read through most of the races and was trying to decide between researching Clans and professions when the bubble finally opened again. Chris checked the time: 5:52pm. The Warden had literally made her wait all day.

She took a peek at the women around her, only to find out that there were none. Every single waiting bubble was empty. Was it all because she’d refused to finish the questionnaire? Had she been paranoid? Was the Warden really trying to psych her out? She must be over-thinking it… but maybe that’s what he wanted? Her thoughts were a maelstrom of paranoia and self-doubt. Well, at least Yaz was also gone.

“Do you need to use the restroom?”

Chris was so lost in thought that she barely heard the guard ask her a question.

“Yes!” Chris practically blurted before she was led into the restroom across the hall.

She was quick about her business but took a moment to wash her hands and face before coming out again. She needed to calm down and be rational about things. The Warden had obviously won the first skirmish, but he didn’t need to know that. Taking a deep breath, Chris decided to start from scratch. She cleared her thoughts and walked out the door to meet the guard, who then led her to the Warden’s office.

[The Warden] was etched on a plaque next to his room. The guard didn’t knock, but simply stood outside the door with Chris for about two seconds before they heard a voice.

“Come in!”

Chris startled. She hadn’t heard a male voice in the prison other than Suerte’s since she arrived. Chris straightened her back, trying to gain an imaginary inch before the guard swiped the lock and let Chris in. Taking a step forward, Chris came into a room just as spartan as the rest of the prison. The only difference, which became immediately obvious to Chris, was that the Warden had set his virtual settings to override hers. It looked like the Grand Canyon, or at least what she had seen from it in pictures. His room looked out over a cliff that stretched thousands of feet above the ground. It was a breathtaking view, but before Chris could finish her analysis of it, the Warden brought her attention to him.

“You must be Chris?” he asked in a deep, but otherwise forgettably unremarkable voice.

The rest of him was equally unexceptional. He was of average height for a man, but that still towered over Chris as he stood behind his desk. He had a clean-shaven face, short-cropped brown hair, dark brown eyes… if Chris had to describe him to a sketch artist, he’d end up looking like the basic shape of any male face. John Smith. Chris was about to nod to his question when she realized how weird her nickname sounded coming from the man in front of her. He didn’t know her, so why was he calling her that?

“Christina Bolen, yes,” she said.

The Warden quirked his lips and nodded before looking down at a folder in his hands.

“Christina Bolen, convicted for the murder of Edward McKlose…”

Chris wasn’t sure if a response was expected so she kept quiet. The Warden unbuttoned his suit and took a seat at his desk. There was a chair in front of her, on her side of his table, but she didn’t dare take a step forward unless he told her to. She’d been led around by his mind tricks all day, so she was going to hold her ground by the door until he told her otherwise. Men had used that trick in job interviews before; she knew it made them feel powerful. After today’s display, Chris wasn’t sure she’d put anything past the man.

“Hmmm. I assume you know how my prison operates.”

His use of ‘my’ and ‘prison’ didn’t go unnoticed by her. It both reduced her to a convict status while elevating him to one of ownership.

“If you mean your rank system, I think so. Yes.”

The Warden looked up at her and nodded.

“Yet, you have not made rank.”

“No, but I assume you’ll let me play anyway.”

Chris forced her voice to remain calm as she spoke the words she’d been mulling over all day.

“Oh?” the Warden asked, a mocking smile on his face. “And why would I do that?”

“Because I’m a very profitable player.”

“How is being in debt profitable, exactly?”

Chris forced her face to remain passive, but let out a pent up breath anyway. He’d given himself away and now she was sure she’d come to the right conclusion.

“Start-up costs,” Chris said simply.

The Warden nodded again, looking back down at his file. That was when Chris knew for sure that the man was playing her. After a week in Goldilocks, she knew how everything was done through b-links. When the Warden looked down, she got a good look at his wrist and saw that he had one just like them. His locked display also confirmed it to her, this man wanted everything done his way. He wouldn’t have hard copies of anything, not unless they were for show. He was probably looking her up on his b-link, if at all. Chris gritted her teeth, knowing she was absolutely powerless.

“Yes, quite impressive” he says. “Yet, it seems to me you just get into more debt as soon as you’re about to start paying it off…”

“It takes money to make money,” Chris said simply.

The Warden considered her for a moment and then said, “No.”

“No?” Chris asked, her heart sinking to her stomach.

“No, I won’t let you play.”

“Why not? I’m a good investment. If you look at my…”

“I know.”

“But…” Chris was at a loss. “Then why… I don’t understand.”

“You don’t need to, that’s what you don’t understand.”

Chris stood there, dumbfounded. If profits were all this man wanted, she could give him profits. Yet even knowing that, he didn’t seem to…

“Oh,” Chris finally said. “What is it?”

Chris swallowed dryly, remembering one of Suerte’s comments.

“What is what?”

“What is it that you really want from me?”

Chris didn’t even want to consider the possibilities. She didn’t think it would come to this. she had thought about this conversation all day, but this had never been one of the possibilities. She would do it. For Rin and for herself. She would do it. She was not going to rot in this hell-hole for the rest of her life.

“Ah, it seems you DO understand,” the Warden nodded in a self-satisfied fashion.

“Yes,” Chris rasped out, not wanting to think about how the man would use her. Her skin suddenly felt dirty, making her want to crawl out of it.

“Perfect. You can start tomorrow.”

Chris nodded, wondering how exactly they were going to start tomorrow. Thoughts started flooding her mind, but she pushed them away, preferring to remain numb to the situation. She didn’t have a choice, there was no point thinking about it.

“Here are my terms,” the Warden said.

Chris’ b-link beeped and she looked down to find it powered off. The yellow light that had been shining since she’d stepped into the [Administrative Wing] was simply off. The b-link hadn’t been off since she’d arrived at Goldilocks. The virtual scenery was gone, revealing simple concrete walls all around. More than ever, she felt trapped and the words the Warden was about to say was only going to make it even more so. She swallowed, tried to keep from being sick and tried to pay attention.

“You can play, but you play for me, not Suerte.”

Chris blinked, wondering if she’d heard right.

“Your allegiance is to me and only me. If I want you to tell him something, you will. If he tells you something, you tell Tiny and she tells me.”

“Tiny?” Chris blurted out,

Her mind whirled with his words and the connotations.

“Yes, Tiny,” the Warden said, giving her a searching look. He sighed. “You might have good business instincts, but your political instincts are absolutely atrocious. Do not do anything stupid in your faction. Tiny is an independent, and she can’t keep an eye on you.”

Chris nodded.

“Learn from her quickly, she’ll be released soon… Which isn’t good for you. You’ve put yourself in a hard position. It would have been better for you to side with Doris… our eyes in her faction are light at the moment. Tiny is trying to get an in, but you already had yours…”

He sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. The gesture made her feel totally incompetent.

“If it happens again…. Well. It probably won’t. Doris is too smart. She’ll sense it if you’re trying too hard… But if she does, if she does offer you a way in, you are to get on her good side.”

Chris opened her mouth, wanting to ask him how exactly she was supposed to do all these things, but he wasn’t done.

“As for Era, you’ll also have a task,” the Warden said.

Chris stood there, not knowing how else to react. This man had taken complete charge of her life, and there was nothing she could do about it.

“You have three months to gather players. You already have a guild… so that’s one task down.”

“O-one?” Chris said, her voice sounding disconnected from her body.

“Yes, the other is to make sure your guild is strong enough to secure a level 6 gate.”

Chris nodded. What else could she do? She had no idea what the Warden needed a group of strong players for and no idea how she was going to gather them, but there really didn’t seem to be a choice. If she said no, he wouldn’t let her play. If he didn’t let her play, she would become worthless to Suerte and he would go back on his deal.

“I have delayed your meeting with Mr.Suerte,” the Warden said nonchalantly, as if he’d sensed the direction her thoughts had taken.

“W-Why?”

“Because I don’t need you acting like… that, in front of him. A weekend should be enough time for you to get a hold on your emotions before you meet him again.”

Chris nodded, not knowing how else to act. He was right.

“That is it, you may leave,” he said and the door opened behind her.

Chris looked back, numb from all that was happening and walked out the open door behind her.

“Oh yes, and one more thing.”

Chris looked back at him, wondering what else he could possibly want. Her mind already felt frayed from everything she’d been put through that day; she really didn’t need anything else.

“The b-link isn’t just for show. Do not betray me.”

The b-link beeped back to life. Chris looked down at her wrist,nodded lamely and followed the guard assigned to personally escort her all the way to the cafeteria. When she got there, it was already emptying out. She quickly grabbed a meal and ate it before being the last to head out. There were a few duds walking around, mopping up the floor.

Suddenly, she remembered something.

Her rank. She immediately opened up her b-link to check.

[5212/5791]

Chris had made it. Barely, but she’d made it. She’d made rank. The only question left was, had the price been too high? She was fully aware of the fact that she’d be dead if Suerte found out, but then again… she’d also be dead if she didn’t do what the Warden wanted.

It takes life to make money.

In this case, it was her life.