Inversions (The Guardian Cycle Book 2) by M V Melcer

Author:M V Melcer [Melcer, M V]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Storm Publishing
Published: 2024-08-14T00:00:00+00:00

She has no idea how to get to Ranath’s office, but her lenses point the way to the same elevator they took with Jacques the other day. She barely notices the greenery now, her eyes on her feet as she tries to outrun her questions. Is the model correct? She’s sure it is. But could the data be wrong somehow, the inputs faulty…? Or is the station about to be hit? And which station? Not all of them will be in the path of the storm. Some will be out of its cone, others shielded behind the cover of Earth. How precise is the model’s timing? The stations move so fast, minutes will make all the difference.

The arrows stop before she runs out of questions. She is in front of a white door, covered with geometric designs etched into the surface. Liz glances around, but there’s no trace of Lars. Should she wait? Knock? How do you announce yourself to Zhu Ranath?

The door slides open before she can figure out the answer. Someone is moving towards her, a slim Asian man about her age, dressed in a navy jacket with gold trim, a deep frown scrunching his brows. Min Woo Lee (he), Renewal Corporation, pops up on her lenses.

He waves his arm, his tone impatient. ‘Come on in.’

Liz follows him inside a large office, about the size of Essa’s workshop. The floor here is the same strange ‘marble’ as in the reception hall: white with grey veins, and yet soft and warm under her feet. To the right, the entire curved wall is a projection surface, now idle. Halfway along its length, four chairs surround a massive table, it, too, looking like it’s made of stone. Two workstations sit against the opposite wall, one occupied by a plump, olive-skinned woman with black hair braided around the crown of her head. Ester Ashen (she), Renewal Corporation, according to Liz’s lenses. There’s more furniture deeper inside, chairs and tables and something that looks like an antique wooden desk, but Liz’s attention snaps to the side door she hasn’t so far noticed. Ranath storms inside, her hair glistening with moisture, her hands fastening the cuffs of her black jacket. Her gaze seems to glide over Liz to her two assistants.

‘How serious is it?’

‘Not very, if we are to trust our current model,’ Ester Ashen says. ‘But that’s apparently under debate.’

‘Where’s Lars?’

‘On his way. He was… otherwise engaged,’ Min Woo says.

Ranath rolls her eyes, then focuses on Liz. ‘Explain.’

Liz shrinks under her gaze, the black pupils making her think of weapon sensors zeroing in on a target. An absurd association; Liz has never seen a weapon, let alone a targeting system. And Ranath is just a woman, flesh and blood like the rest of them, if with a hell of a lot more money.

‘We have developed a new model based on… on new developments. A new algorithm. We’ve been testing…’ Liz pauses. Ranath’s brow is tightening with impatience; in a moment she will cut her off.

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