93

--The Enclave--

Varier Corporation.

Sweat dripped down, falling from her eyebrows as she hit the punching bag with more force than skill. Wiping if off with the back of her wrist, she took a deep breath and stepped back.

The unpredictably successful creators of TheirWorld: Varier Corporation. It was a mystery about how the company had gained so much influence after Gren Yilin’s actions resulted in the deaths of so many people. There were still living victims of that event; many now forced into the spotlight as they've started to wake up after six years of being in comas. It wasn’t unrealistic for the corporation to be working with the hospital —

— which then begged the question: Why lie?

It was possible, she supposed, that the hospital was doing other kinds of research for them. TheirWorld’s technology was intimately connected to various medical fields, and talk of special kinds of facilities that allowed physical movement to go along with game play was not unusual. It was likely they’d need some kind of medical staff working with the engineering teams.

If she really wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt, it would be easy to go as far as to say that it was some sort of secret project that the hospital was working alongside them with.

It might also be that she was overthinking things; it could have been that the hospital was simply being hired out as a contractor. Giving her that sort of information may have taken an explanation he didn’t want to give for one reason or another.

Her brain struggled as it tried to make everything make sense.

Grim had been under the understanding that Jake had left early because knew that he was a cop. Then, it was very likely that he didn’t give Shen a second thought. She was just a barista, so why run this time?

A shiver ran down her spine, and she punched the bag so hard she had to shake out her wrist.

Jake had been the one to suggest the Perch. Dassah had interpreted this as meaning that Jake wasn’t as dangerous as Grim led her to believe. But what if he had known that Grim wasn’t going to be there?

And how would his connection to Varier Corporation have anything to do with him knowing anything about Grim? Dassah scoffed at herself and continued to abuse the heavy bag in front of her. That’s not it. You were taken right in by him, and now you are looking for reasons to be suspicious, she scolded herself. Why the hell did you say ‘yes’?

There wasn’t much to do about it. She’d meet him for dinner, as promised, and then if she never wanted to see him again, at least she could tell Stella she gave it shot. For now, she just needed to be happy that after she and Jake had left the Perch, nothing else of interest had happened. It was just a normal day. Ishida and Sathuren hadn’t even bothered with her since she had walked into the dojo.

‘A normal day’.

Dassah sighed. Just what constituted as a normal day to her, nowadays?

Listening to Stella go on about her various relationships with people that Dassah had never seen or spoken to? That was ‘normal’. She kept asking after Dassah’s own personal life, and offered her usual opinions about how she lived. There were occasional comments about TheirWorld, but when Bahena was in the room, all conversation felt a bit like walking on eggshells.

Bahena herself hadn’t said much to either of them today. Any words that were exchanged were purely about work. Frustration built up the more she thought about it.

Stella took the blame for Jake. Her soured relationship with Bahena was all Sathuren’s fault.

Her gaze fell on the white and purple garule. From across the room their gazes met. His yellow-gold eyes looked at her her with curiosity before he fell on all fours. Shaking her head, Dassah refocused on the bag, throwing a quick jab with her left hand. Imagining his face appearing on the black leather, she hit the bag with all her strength. Cursing out loud as the recoil caused her arm to jerk back, she grit her teeth to hold back her tears.

“Hey,” Sathuren’s raspy voice carried over as he stepped closer to her. He winced as he looked her over. “You are standing way too close to that bag.”

“Thanks for that brilliant insight,” she spat. “What do you want?”

“For you not to hurt yourself, for starters,” he told her quietly. “You okay?”

Ashamed of her spiraling emotions, Dassah shook out her arm. “I’m fine,” she choked out. Peeling her gloves off, she walked toward the table by the window.

It was already dark. Kneading her arm, she looked out over the sparkling hex city asking herself once again: What the hell was she doing there? Bright lights twinkled well out into the distance as the sea gently rocked the city.

She heard Sav’s claws click up behind her. “If you need some ice —”

“I said I was fine,” she told him, turning. “What’s with you, looking so apologetic?” she grumbled. “It’s irritating.”

“I can’t help but think I have something to do with it,” he said.

“With what?”

“Why you’re angry.”

Dassah watched a moment as he sat on the table, picking at his nails. “Have you done something that I should be angry about?” she asked, leaning against the window to face him. “The only thing I’m mad about today is myself. Shockingly, the world does not revolve around my relationship with any garuli, forget you, specifically,” she told him. “Though it would be nice if your sister would speak to me.”

“If it makes you feel any better, she’s not speaking to me, either.”

“Oh good,” Dassah went, pulling her water bottle from her bag. “I’ve managed to wreck not only my own relationship with Bahena, but yours as well. Aren’t I talented.”

“I don’t think you can reasonably take credit for that,” he said, sourly. “I do a good enough job all on my own, thank you.”

Laughing, Dassah said, “It’s funny.”

“What is?”

“Us,” she smirked over at him. “You and me. Badass independant garuli and frightened little human. Hell. The only reason I can talk to like this right now is that I’ve used up all the energy I had for anxiety and paranoia on someone else. But here we are. Both managing to fuck up in the exact same ways. Remind me of this conversation later, would you? Maybe I’ll stop being such an unbearable little shit.”

Chuckling he nodded at her. “You are a bit ‘Guin’, today,” he noted, then his brows knit together. “Who, other than me, manages to get you to waste all that energy?”

“A date,” she admitted with a heavy sigh. Then shook her head. “I need a drink,” she said and started going through her bag again, looking for her clothes. “A shower, and a drink.”

Sav looked at his watch. “Well, I was supposed to meet Bahena tonight, but since she canceled on me, I know a place — if you want to go…”

“You really want to go?” she blinked. “With me?”

“What else am I gonna do?” he muttered, picking up his own sack. “I have three choices: Be miserable back home in TheirWorld. Be miserable dealing with Ishida’s harassment. Or, take the chance that you and I can be miserable together while figuring out a way to get my sister to not be mad at the both of us. Or at least one of us.”

Tilting her head up at him, she really did wonder what his game was. He seemed honest enough. Screw it, Dassah said, laughing a bit. I’m going on a date with a guy I don’t trust at all tomorrow. “Why shouldn’t I start off my new life of reckless behavior by going to a bar with a giant lizard?” she chuckled.

“Dinosaur,” Sav corrected pointedly. “Lizards don’t have feathers.”

“I think that’s part of the insult,” she told him, scrunching her nose.

“I am aware.”

Dassah hit him with her bag. “Meet downstairs in fifteen?” she asked.

“Sounds good,” he replied with a smile.

Maybe he wasn’t so bad after all, for a dinosaur.