Zero Rogue by Matthew S. Cox

Author:Matthew S. Cox [Cox, Matthew S.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781948099561
Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press
Published: 2018-01-29T06:00:00+00:00

aron’s aimless wander had left him slouched on the floor of a PubTran maglev terminal. A few still-working overhead lights painted the dingy white tiles behind him with glare. The station had only a few people in it, but appeared functional despite its proximity to a grey zone. None of the merchant stalls along the concourse still operated, not even the CaffeiNation. A feeble holo-emitter continued to animate a handful of tiny flags, recreating the retired Stars and Stripes, with coffee beans in place of stars. Next door, three fringers had made a home of the gutted remnants of a fast food place. Someone had drawn a moustache and an exaggerated penis on the giant cartoon chicken mascot etched on the window.

Three grimy boys trudged up the street-access stairway twenty yards to his left. The youngest looked about nine, the oldest no more than twelve. All three eyed the sparse group of commuters with calculating eyes too old for their small bodies. Judging by the shoddy condition of their clothing, Aaron assumed them the offspring of squatters in the grey. They had the same saddle-colored skin and bushy brown hair; they might’ve been siblings. The boys disregarded Aaron, evidently assuming a man slumped against the wall of a PubTran station had nothing worth stealing or begging for.

He watched them go from person to person. A thin, intellectual-looking man ran into a column to get away from them, earning laughter and mockery when he fell. Their next target, a wild-eyed man with frizzy hair who muttered incessantly at thin air, reacted no better―he ignored them as though they weren’t real. They scored a few credits from a sympathetic woman who fell for the youngest child’s pouty stare before crossing thirty yards of open space to the next cluster of waiting people.

A middle-aged man became worked up at the sight of them and took out a NetMini. He asked about their families, why they were on the street at their age, and what sort of food they liked. Aaron wasn’t sure if he felt guilty or disappointed at their choosing to beg rather than mug. Granted, since money went digital, mugging wouldn’t have gotten them much, unless they fancied crappy suits or a battered briefcase. The look in the eye of the eldest seemed malicious at first, and Aaron had looked forward to a little entertainment. Then again, they lacked the size to mug anyone but other children; the most they’d manage would be a grab-and-run. Allison’s mental ghost chided him for not being the one to feed them. He tried to rub a building headache out of his temples.

She’d have wanted to take them home.

He daydreamed about her approaching them, chattering away in Spanish with wide eyes and a big smile. The boys would have gotten whatever they wanted from her.

Aaron stared at the trio, wide-eyed with gratitude. One man’s willing charity had caught the brothers so off guard they lost the ability to speak. Surely, life on a hydroponic farm

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