Chapter 44 - Wealthy And Privileged

  Away from things, towards things, through things. Alex had been running essentially the whole time he’s been in hell. Now he’s going to be running ‘for things’. Not wanting to cause any strife on his first day, Alex selects one of the satchels that’s destined for the other end of the city. According to what Jewel had said, those are the less desirable routes and the other runners wouldn’t be getting to them until later in the day. Alex double-checks the board, the destination, and his map. Mentally plotting his route, he doesn’t take too much notice of Jewel curiously watching him.

  “Starting ambitious huh? For most of us, that would be the last parcel we’d touch.” Jewel says, shrugging. “But if that’s going to be your first, you might as well grab lunch on your way back. It’ll be nearly noon-bell before you make it in for another.”

  Alex smirks. “I’ll be alright. Dale said it’s a slow day, so I don’t wanna take the better picks from the others. Not yet at least.” He says with a chuckle. “Oh, is there any reason not to take more than one at a time?” He asks, hefting the satchel’s strap over his shoulder.

  Shaking her head, Jewel lifts one of the other bags. “No, you could if you wanted. But you’ll tire yourself out real quick. Some can be heavy, and even one extra bag will slow you down.” She says, putting the satchel back. “And with this type of work, speed and endurance are everything. Wear yourself out too early and you end up only getting three or four routes done instead of five.” She explains.

  Alex nods, chewing his lip. Then to Jewel’s surprise, he grabs another of the satchels going in the same direction. Checking the map again, Alex adjusts his planned path. “I’ll be back.” He says, grinning.

  Jewel watches as Alex takes not one, but two, of the longer distance parcels and heads out of the bay. She crosses her arms and mutters to herself. “He’ll learn the hard way it seems.” But she can’t help the grin tugging at the corners of her mouth. Then, instead of starting to walk or run, Alex just vanishes along with his two animal friends. Jewel blinks, her mouth slowly falling open. “That was… but he’s… what the actual fuck!”

  The city street blurs past Alex in smears of color. After a couple days exploring, walking these streets, and learning some of the landmarks, Alex is more confident in making longer intent-movement jumps. Each one carries him a handful of blocks, and Alex revels in the feeling of movement with purpose again.

  Using the map, Alex had plotted the route by number of blocks and then which way to turn. “Four, Left, Two, Right, Ten, Left…” He mutters to himself, keeping his directions fresh in his mind. The pair of satchels weigh on his shoulders and Alex can understand why most of the runners would stick to doing just one at a time. If he had to run this without the use of Intent-movement, he’d be worn out completely by the time he made it to the first stop.

  It takes barely a minute for Alex to cross beyond the familiar area of the city and into districts that he hadn’t been in before. Between leaps, Alex catches glimpses of the surroundings in clearer details. The route he’d planned cuts across the more central areas of the urban sprawl, and the buildings take on more utilitarian and industrial designs as he moves closer to the inner-city. The taller buildings cast the streets in shadow with the morning sun, making the light seem to strobe as Alex shoots along.

  Hara’s glad that all she has to do is focus on following Alex. The back and forth turns have her disoriented after only a few changes in direction. But Alex seems to understand where they’re going, and that’s all that matters to her. The bigger and taller buildings make her feel like she’s running down a deep canyon, normally something to be avoided. In a canyon it’s too easy to get caught and cornered. She has vague memories of hunting that way, chasing prey into a dead end where the pack could trap it. But those were times long before she met her old friend.

  It feels good to have a pack again, running together, eating together, bedding down together. Even if it’s a small pack, it makes Hara happy. Carrying bags from one place to another is an odd form of hunting, but it gets Alex little pieces of metal. And then Alex can turn those little pieces into tasty food by giving them to other people. Even the thought of getting more makes Hara’s muzzle drip as they all run, maybe she can convince Alex to stop for snacks.

  Another turn starts angling the trio away from the city’s heart and towards another section of the outer rim. Alex takes note that things start to shift towards a densely packed residential feel, the street lined with highrise apartment complexes and corner-stores. The residents of the district mill about, going through their morning routines, hurrying this way and that. Alex only ponders on the density of the living conditions for a moment, the realization of the necessity hitting him as quickly as he can think of the question. But he pushes the thought aside, intending to ask Corvus about it after making the first of the deliveries.

  Only a few more turns later, Alex ends one leap in front of a building that stands out from the others in the area. Clearly not part of the urban residential theme. The construction could only be described by one word, ‘brutalist’. The three story slate-grey stone-brick building is obviously more secure, with barred windows, a heavy metal door, and even a guard standing out front. At least Alex assumes it’s a guard, considering the neatly tailored uniform, and the long staff capped at both ends with metal reinforcements. He double-checks the address on the building with the ticket on the parcel, then approaches the guard.

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  “I have a delivery here, addressed to office A-three.” Alex announces himself, taking a few steps up the short stone stairs to the doorway. The guard holds out a hand, palm out, a clear sign for Alex to stop. Without saying a word, the guard’s attention seems to waver. A moment longer and he steps to the side and just as wordlessly motions for Alex to enter. “Um, thanks.” Alex says, cautiously stepping around the burly figure. But before he reaches the door, the guard points to Hara with Corvus resting atop her back and shakes his head. Alex gives a nod. “I’ll be right back.” He says before stepping up to the doors.

  The metal doors, despite their size and thickness, swing open easily from his lightest touch. Though Alex has the clear impression that without the guard’s consent he’d have no chance to get through them. The space beyond is no lobby as Alex had anticipated, but just a hallway lined with labeled doors. The one he’s after is near at hand. A quick knock, some sound of shuffling from within, and it pops open.

  An owlish man peers out, the appearance not helped at the slightest when the man only asks, “Who?” His balding pate ringed by a fringe of unkempt hair that sticks out in a manner that has Alex thinking of a barn-owl, and the glasses perched on the nose sport thick rounded lenses. Alex has to summon all his willpower not to chortle.

  “A uh, delivery, sir.” Alex says, proffering the customer end of the ticket. “Zephyr Courier Services.” He hefts the satchel from over his shoulder and unstraps the flap, opening it to retrieve the wooden-boxed package.

  “Oh, yes yes. I hadn’t been expecting this till later.” The man says, taking it and tearing off the ‘receipt’ ticket, leaving Alex with his part. “Thank you, young man.” He says before stepping back and slamming the door in Alex’s face. Alex blinks, muttering a ‘you’re welcome’ at the door. But the job is done and he makes a retreat from the oppressive building.

  Alex isn’t surprised at all when there’s a notable ‘clack’ when the metal doors close behind him, some type of invisible latch snapping into place. He quickly descends to the street before turning to look behind himself. Hara pads up from where she’d been waiting and Alex crouches down. “Not a very friendly place.” He says under his breath where only his companions would hear him.

  Hara looks past Alex and up at the tall structure. It reminds her more of a cave on a cliffside than a building. “What inside?” She asks, tipping her head curiously.

  “Just offices, from what I could tell. Lots of them.” Alex says with a shrug. There was no name or labeling on the building, nothing to suggest its intended function. “Corvus, can you shed any light on it?” He asks, looking to the crow.

  Corvus stretches his wings before replying, angling his black-marble eyes up at the structure. “Beurocracy. The long studied art of efficient wastefulness. Equal parts requirement and uselessness.” The crow’s reply comes across weary and dismissive, resigned to acknowledging the need and hating it at the same time. “That building is full of legal clerks and accountants that work for Leviathan indirectly. They manage the coin economy, the expansion of New Europa as needed, and the maintenance of the city’s facilities.”

  Alex looks back over his shoulder and gives a nod. “That makes sense. Kinda fitting for a governmental building, I suppose.” He muses before standing up. Then he remembers his moment of curiosity on the way.

  “One more thing. Passing through those apartment blocks, I had a thought about why it’s all so packed in. I was going to ask, but I think I figured it out.” He says, glancing down the road in the direction they’d come from. “With the Animus-loans and the coin economy helping keep things rolling, less souls face dissolution here. So there’s always a positive influx of new residents. The city will just keep getting more and more people, and as long as they can afford the rent or property costs, there’s no reason to leave.” He says, looking back to Corvus for confirmation.

  The crow nods and then cocks his head at Alex. “You are indeed correct, but you are missing a critical detail. New Europa is old. Very old indeed. And that influx of souls is far greater than you estimate. The apartments and residences that you see here are the cheap and easily constructed variety. Even your new friend’s rather plush residence would be considered ‘affordable’ by most.” Corvus says, his tone taking on the cadence of a lecturing teacher.

  “However, this is only the surface of the city. Some buildings may reach upwards for more space, but if you wish to see the true magnitude of New Europa’s size, we would need to venture below the streets.” Corvus says, using a wing to point further down the road to where a stairway leads down beneath one of the buildings. “The wealthy and privileged reside beneath.”

  Alex blinks, his mind having trouble catching up to the sense of scale that Corvus implies. “How far down does it go?” He asks, eyes drifting from the crow to where that staircase disappears.

  “Fathoms.” Is the only answer that Corvus gives, the single word somehow carrying more weight than the earlier explanation.

  When he’s about to speak again, Hara beats Alex to the punch. “Hara hungry. Can get food after next place we go?” She asks innocently, derailing Alex’s whirling thoughts about how vast the subterranean city must be if New Europa is this large on the surface.

  Shaking himself free of those thoughts, Alex smiles. “Yeah, we’ll grab something as soon as we’re on our way back from the deliveries. Maybe Kabobs again.” And that answer gets Hara wagging again.