Shadowrun by Patrick Goodman

Author:Patrick Goodman [Goodman, Patrick]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Catalyst Game Labs

The lobby of the Conner-Westin Hotel was everything Thomas had ever imagined about luxury hotels. Carpet that caressed your feet running in paths between marble flooring. Leather divans holding men and women in cocktail dress sipping drinks that cost more than the person serving them made in a day. Subtle AR architecture that made the stones look smoother, the leather richer, and the shadows of the lobby more welcoming.

Thomas felt immediately and completely out of place. He patted himself down again, making sure his weapon was ready and his charms had not vanished in the last five minutes. Unable to stall any longer, he approached the desk, ready to transmit his ID.

He was greeted by a coolly efficient elven woman who was somewhere between twenty and sixty-five years old. “How may I help you, sir?”

“I’m Dr. Thomas McAllister,” he said. “I’m meeting my wife here.”

Without appearing to look anything up anywhere, the woman said, “Of course, sir. Mrs. McAllister told us you’d be arriving soon.” She pressed a couple of keys on a touchscreen—finer hotels knew having desk clerks waving their fingers in empty air was unnerving—and a slot on the counter silently dispensed a keycard, which she handed to him. “You’re in suite 1703; I hope you enjoy your stay.”

He accepted the keycard and muttered his thanks, then headed to the elevators, where he found Lydia waiting for him. “I’d like to go on record, again, as saying that this is a really stupid idea,” she said. “Of course, I’m not sure which is worse, you going in there, or me coming along to back you up.”

“I’ll keep that in mind if I wind up having to complete a survey on our time together,” he said. As he spoke, Thomas reached into his pocket and pulled out a cheap-looking silver ring and a pair of military dog tags on a beaded chain. The ring he placed on his right middle finger, and the tags he hung around his neck. He pushed the elevator call button, and while they waited for the car to arrive he closed his eyes and took several deep breaths.

As the car arrived, Lydia noticed the ring begin to glow softly. Thomas seemed not to notice the door open, and Lydia had to guide him through it. The ring’s glow began to fade as the doors slid shut, and then the dog tags took their turn. When he made no move to push a button, she reached out and pushed the button for the seventeenth floor. The car began to ascend. As they passed the eighth floor, he finally opened his eyes.

He was surrounded by a dimly glowing aura; in the brightly lit elevator, it was hard to make out. “You’re glowing,” she said, her tone slightly annoyed.

He nodded as he tucked the dog tags under the collar of his shirt. “Armor spell. Unfortunate side effect I haven’t been able to do anything about.”

“So much for stealth.”

As the door opened, he looked down the hall and muttered under his breath.

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