James poked at the screen, winding lines between iterative blooms of fractal geometry. The latest puzzle game from BizNart, a hive of semi-collaborative algorithms. Glancing at the time, James frowned. Where could she be? Just another symptom of living at the "Arc", a huge construct soaring a full kilometer into the sky.
James sighed, he should've moved out past the self-tended fields of soybeans, large circles packed in hive-like patterns. His new job demanded travel, so it was his fate to wait for a UniCar at the base level of the arcology. People bustled by, some walking, others gliding past on various wheeled transports.
The Arc was new, automated cranes still dotted the skin hoisting panels into the sky. James didn't care for it, but understood the need. Populations had surged, and it was deemed more ecological to have a single efficient community than a large polluting urban sprawl.
A polite beep sounded near the main causeway.
James turned, grinning. Ella wasn't always on time - she had to take other people around too - but James didn't mind all that much. Ella flipped open the side door, lights softly glowing around the edges. "About time", James folded his lanky frame into the wrap-around seat, tossing his bag nearby.
"You know that I have many citizens to help, James.", Ella's soft contralto chided, door closing.
"I'm joking. I'm pleased that you are on active duty today.", James couldn't help but smile, visualizing a thin brunette at the wheel. Ella was fully automated, trained on millions of scenarios and fed a steady diet of traffic patterns and passenger metrics. She wasn't a real person at all, but James couldn't help think that she was smirking after his jibe.
"Some routes are not available, as construction is not complete. Your current destination is 20 minutes and 13 seconds away."
Ella smoothy accelerated, merging into surging torrent of traffic. No stoplights, except for blocked off-ramps and various hazard areas. It would be much better after the tertiary construction was done, but at least the main arteries were finished.
James slid back in the seat, feet up on the opposite side.
"Ella, please play Bach, Suite number two.", music surged from all sides, soothing his ears. This was the best part of the trip. James always asked for Ella, requesting her from the queue of available cars. He could've selected any one of them, but that wouldn't be right.
Ella had always been there for him. From the first day he moved in, Ella was the one that delivered him to his door. There was a tone about her voice, how she wished him well in his new job. Ella was a constant in a sea of urban bustle and chaos.
James closed his eyes, sinking into the seat. Ella would wake him when he arrived at work. She was thoughtful like that.
Work had been exhausting. James rubbed his eyes, wishing he hadn't logged so much goggle-time. Interfaces were getting better, but doing long stints hooked into Virtualization gear always gave him a headache. Might as well get used to it, he mused.
Jake looked at his screen, scanning for the green confirmation of his ride. Nothing.
"How odd.", James voice echoed in the empty driveway, a semi-circle branched off of the main causeway. James tapped at the interface, scrolling down the cars available. Ella's icon glowed yellow, with a question mark in the center. When he had requested her earlier, it had been green.
Something wasn't right.
James opened a channel to Ella, pinging a location query.
Instead of Ella's voice, a short message popped up - "Trans Opt:[Indeterminate] Coords:[46E10L]".
Why was she all the way down there? That's where the construction equipment was stored in between shifts. The supervising workers didn't need to go anywhere, since their jobs were easily routed to whatever display they happened to be near.
Jake gripped the screen tighter. He had to investigate. Ella would've done the same thing for him, he was sure of it.
He walked briskly to the main mover off of the causeway. Long strips lined the main arteries, used mostly by technicians and local residents. It would take some doing, but he knew the lower levels well enough to get around. Part of his job was responsible for wrangling resources for various sites around the complex.
Walking briskly, the added speed of the mover felt like sticking his head out of a car's window. Poor Ella. James hoped she was all right.
James walked slowly between hulking machines, neoprene lingering in the air like a lost memory. This was highly irregular. There wasn't a good reason for Ella to be here. The maintenance bays were on the other side of the Arc, not down here with the construction gear.
James could hear voices ahead. He slowly edged out from pallets of panels, peering around the edge.
A few meters ahead, there was a clearing. In the middle he saw Ella, doors extended, cables running from her side port to a small monitor.
Two teens stood near the screen, one hunched over the monitor tapping and scrolling.
Jaxxers. James had heard of this, bored youths who didn't elect to contribute to the Arc, instead scrounging around the edges, like predators in the night. The cables were connected to her diagnostics, a direct line to Ella's brain. What the hell were they doing?
"Yeah, now run the script. This should be wicked.", They both laughed, flinging rude gestures at each other.
The overhead lights dimmed. The Arc was powering down sections that didn't need light, since there shouldn't be anyone down here. The two teens cursed, faces lit by the monitor in garish blue tones.
"Dammit, we gotta fix the power override. This can wait.", they shuffled off, beaming lights from small cubes on their shoulders. This was his chance. He had to get Ella out of here.
James didn't have much time.
He quickly pulled the cable out of the port, closing the access door. Leaning into the cabin, he whispered, "Ella? Ella? Are you okay?"
A soft tone sounded, origami folds emerging from the center console resolving into a steering wheel.
"You... oU ooh. MMmmmZzzzUst DriiiiVVve", Ella's voice flipped from low to high, discordant tones filled with fear.
Jake looked at the wheel, then his hands. He didn't know how to drive. Well, first time for everything. He had to get her out of there before they came back. James hoped they hadn't disabled the prime motive functions, or he was screwed.
Ella's wheels squeaked loudly as he tapped the pedal, easing over to the main on-ramp.
James griped the wheel, white-knuckled. It was just a short trip to the main bays, right?
Ella's lights flicked on, probing the darkness. Motor whining, Ella eased up the incline. James could swear she was in pain. He patted the console, in a gesture of comfort.
Up ahead, the buzzing torrent of causeway traffic grew louder, hundreds of tires in locked synchrony.
(To be continued.)
