Neo Atlantis - Part One (Patreon)

The bones of this story were posted a few years ago on my Deviantart page, but this version has been cleaned up, and will fit better into the future chapters. 

Enjoy!
-Stigy

***   ***   ***

Monday always sucks.

Courtney's rule #7. It's universal I think. Monday sucks.

My Monday started with a note from the landlord. If I didn't pay the back rent on my slip at the marina, they'd litigate... yadda, yadda, yadda. Wash, rinse, repeat.

So it was time to hop in the runabout and punch the clock. I may not be the most well-heeled urban salvage operator out there, but I'm the best...

You don’t know what I mean, do you? Okay, fine. Set the way-back machine for the better part of a century.

Back at the turn of the millennium, there were a lot of folks who ignored the obvious. 'Global warming? Then why is it snowing in winter?' they said. 'Climate change is part of nature,' they continued. 'It can't affect us that badly....'

A great comedian of the era, George Carlin put it best, “The planet is fine. The people’re screwed.”

As the polar ice caps melted, the influx of cold, fresh water did the unthinkable. It altered major currents in both the Atlantic and Pacific. It wasn't subtle either. Sure, the ocean levels only rose about thirty feet globally, but it happened in under a day. Besides, do you have any idea how much of twentieth-century civilization was only thirty feet above sea level?

They called it 'The Surge'. The floods and tides crushed most major cities that weren’t far enough inland. Economies collapsed, nations teetered.

Eventually, everything settled out. Most of Earth reached a new equilibrium. Even though the Surge was the greatest loss of human life ever, we’re a damn resilient species. Sure, there’s still chaos elsewhere in the world, but most of North America was just too damn big to collapse, and in some ways, life is better now that before the floods came.

I suppose I shouldn't be too bitter about it, though. Without that, I'd be out of a job.

I specialize in retrieving things from the sea floor. Specifically, a lot of the former urban centers on the Old Gulf of Mexico. You wouldn't believe how much cash you can find salvaging in the urban reef of 'Neo Atlantis' as they call it now.

The best part, my expenses are dirt cheap. You know, why is that phrase still in use? Dirt, real arable soil, is actually really valuable.

Anyway, maybe ninety percent of my contracts are for insignificant items, family mementos left behind in the mad rush to save loved ones. I don't even need a lot of specialized equipment for it.

Under a placid gray sky, I brought my runabout to the proper coordinates, dropped the sea anchor and killed the engine. The ocean was calm and fairly flat today above what had been the Texas coast only fifty years before. Tops of skyscrapers, now artificial islands, poked up through the deceptively peaceful blue waters. There was no one else around.

With a sigh, I started shucking out of my sweats, and pulling on what I joking called my Work Suit. It’s a green one-piece swimsuit, made of that new thermal weave material. Basically, when it gets wet, it holds in my core body heat. Cold rarely bothers me, but with this suit I can work at depths of fifty, sixty feet without worrying about water temperature… if I don’t dawdle.

Today’s job should be quick, though. Roughly thirty feet down, in the remains of one of these buildings, was an old vault. Deposit box 973-A was my target of the day. I didn’t know what was inside, but judging from the way the old lady cried when I said I’d take the job, it was something intensely personal.

As salvage jobs went in Neo Atlantis, this one was simple. That was fine by me. I needed more simple in my life after what went down in Phoenicia.

That sticky mess began just over a year ago. I’d done a job not too far from here, another simple swim & scoop from an old vault, when something caught my eye.

It was in a locked case that had sprung open since the rising waters of the Atlantic forced the office tower to be abandoned. The case held… I still don’t know what. Some sort of fabric. There were glowing circuit-like patterns in it. That had been what drew my eye. In the gloom of the submerged vault there was no way to tell what it was, so I stuffed it in my sack and finished what I was there to do.

Hours later, I tied my little skiff off next to the Distant Horizon, that’s the boat I live on. I suppose it would have once been a yacht, but it’s old and the engine barely runs anymore. It doesn’t even have a decent wi-fi receiver. Anyway, I moor the Horizon at a little marina in New Victoria, Texas. It’s not much of a marina really, but I can afford it, barely.

I sat on the Horizon's small swim deck, dangling my feet in the water and examining my find.

It was some sort of bodysuit. Dark bluish-green, with those circuit like marking in bright blue. It felt like silk, but it was even lighter. The whole thing didn’t seem to have any weight or friction at all. The weird thing is, I could have sworn it was just a bolt of fabric earlier…

It looked about the right size - even the seamless gloves and booties - and it wasn’t long before the curiosity became too much. I ducked into the Horizon's cabin and changed into the strange suit.

I expected it to be resistant, like pulling on a wet suit or the like. But it wasn't. My skin underneath the material felt comfortable, slightly refreshed even. It was like taking a barely cool shower when you're feeling very overheated. The change was palpable. Once it was all in place, I admired it in the mirror on the back of the door.

For a moment, nothing. It was just an odd body suit. Then I felt it ripple. I had a split second to realize it was literally changing shape, then every nerve in my body caught fire!

I tried to scream, but before the cry even formed, the fire eased and faded.

I'd fallen to the floor in that terrible instant, and as I climbed to my feet, I caught sight of myself again...

I swallowed against a sudden, massive lump in my throat. 

My voice wavered a bit as I called out loud to the multimedia system next to my bunk. “Phone.” it beeped. “Call Amy.”

Amy is my younger sister. She's just turned twenty and still lives at home with Mom.

She is also way too smart for her own good. Amy is a tech-loving unapologetic cyber nerd who's always looking for a way to make some quick cash. My sister’s usually up to something or other. Don't play poker with her.

Twenty minutes later, I spotted her rainbow Kool-aid colored hair through the window as she came down the dock, and a moment later she knocked.

“Come on in,” I called.

“Ok, Sis. What's so all-fired urgent? And why’re the lights so low…” she stopped and looked me and my bathrobe up and down. “Did I get you out of the shower?”

“Aims,” I asked, trying to keep the fear out of my voice. “Do you know anyone that’s an expert in lostech?”

“Technology lost in the Surge?” Amy gave me an arch look. “You mean, other than me?”

“Great. Got any idea what this is?” I shucked out of the robe. The semi-loose body suit now clung to me like a second skin. No seams, no closures. Touching it felt like touching my bare flesh. The fabric was faintly luminescent, throwing off a bluish-white light. Hence the robe, but the lights were low because of the marks on my cheeks, like the suit had grown like weeds, sending tendrils up to my face before fusing to me. Worse, the sclera of my eyes were now the same blue as the circuit patterns.

Amy's jaw dropped. She tentatively poked at the suit, then tried to pinch some between her thumb and finger.

“Ow,” I swatted at her hand. “It's... I dunno, it's like it's grown into me.”

“But what the heck is it?” she asked.

“I thought you said you were an expert.”

“I am... But this isn't lostech. At least, I don't think so.”

“Great...” I sighed. “How the hell do I get it off?”

And with that, the suit rippled again, and I felt it flow up, off of my limbs, reconfiguring itself yet again. Amy fell backwards onto her rump.

“The hell?” she asked, looking at my midsection. “You got one heck of a magic bikini.”

I glanced down. Sure enough, it had become an odd two-piece swimsuit. “This is too freaky...” I muttered, feeling the line between my thigh at the lower portion of... whatever this was.

My finger slipped under the material and my eyes went wide.

Quickly I turned around and pulled the damn thing off, leaving it in a pile on the cabin floor. I smirked at it as I stepped back, tying my robe tightly around myself again. The terrycloth felt rough and wonderful after the nightmare invasion of the suit.

“I guess you take it off like that.” Amy said, fighting off a laugh.

“Yeah, no kidding...” I used a broom to scoop up the strange garments, and dropped them in an empty shoe box without touching them. Then I duct-tapped the box shut and stuffed it in a closet.

Amy tapped her chin. I could almost hear the gears turning in her shifty little brain. “So, let me make a few discreet inquiries. Bet I can identify what that stuff is.”

“Sure.” I was at my wit’s end. I just wanted to dump the box back into the bay and have done with it... but whatever this stuff was, it may be worth something, and I wasn't so flush with wealth that I could afford to ignore a payday. “Yeah, discreet.”

***

Shaking off the flashback down memory lane, I reached over the side to splash a handful of water on my face. That wasn't even the weirdest part of the story... oh, heck no.

Anyway, I pulled on a pair of battered old swim fins and opened the small storage box that held my Nanobreather.

Yes, I could afford one. Barely. Besides, the oxygen-scrubbing device would pay for itself, eventually. Keeping air tanks pressurized and ready isn't as cheap as it sounds.

I fit the device's face-mask over my eyes, making sure the seams had a good snug seal. Then I pulled the cloth mouth guard down and over my chin, again keeping a tight seal. I activated it by pressing a recessed button on the left ear enclosure. The seals bonded comfortably to my skin, and the nanobreather began its magic. It removed oxygen from air, water, whatever; and then fed the liberated oxygen to me in safe proportion and at surface pressure. Now, I had three hours of safe breathing.

I love technology. Just don't ask me how it actually works.

With a hand over my face, I rolled off my runabout and into the sea.

As the water closed over me and I swam downward, I suddenly wished I'd brought my pistol. I keep a licensed Particle Projection Gun on my runabout. It does double duty as a weapon and cutting torch. Maybe it was all the woolgathering that made me think of it.

Oh well, too late now.

Amy's inquiries had been discreet indeed, I guess. After a few months, we were no closer to understanding 'The Magic Bikini' than when we'd begun.

It's not like I forgot the weirdness. But over time, it had faded as the realities of bills and jobs and things took over.

Truthfully, I didn't give the matter much thought after a while. In fact, not until New Year’s Eve, when I came home to find the Distant Horizon's cabin door wide open.

I said a few very unladylike things and made sure it was safe before I went through the hatch and began inventorying the losses. I called the cops too, but it was 'just a property crime' so they said they'd send someone out... eventually.

I grumbled about that more than a bit as I tallied what was missing. My entertainment center was gone, as was a hidden store of cash, a bit of cheap jewelry, and anything else small and valuable. As the list grew, I felt more and more miserable.

Finally, in disgust, as the sun was cresting in the east, I noticed a certain shoebox was on its side… and empty.

Honestly, it made me laugh. I just couldn’t take it. I fell on my butt and shook with laughter for a good ten minutes. Slowly, though, it faded. Replaced with the thought that someone pawed through all my stuff, and taken a lot, just to cover the theft of that stupid thing.

Eventually, I got myself back under control and began cleaning up.

The cabin’s lock was busted beyond repair, so I spent New Year’s day on the boat with my blaster near at hand. I had Amy come over the next day and boat-sit while I went off to buy a new lock, a bigger, meaner one, thank you very much.

Months passed, and life gradually returned to normal. I stopped sleeping with my gun under my pillow, stopped freaking out at every little sound, and could eventually leave the Distant Horizon without constant worry.

It was mid-April when I got a phone call from Amy. I’d just finished a fairly grueling series of jobs for a client who wanted a staggering amount of junk hauled to the surface, but my sister’s first words cut through the exhaustion.

“Want a week at New Eden?”

New Eden was a luxury resort on the artificial island of Phoenicia, anchored over what had been several islands in the Caribbean. A week of sun, fun, and only getting wet when -I- wanted to? It sounded like paradise.

But this was Amy. This required caution. “What’ll it cost me?”

“Nothing!” she cheered. “I won two all-inclusive tickets, hotel, food, the works.”

I tried to keep the skepticism out of my voice. I mostly succeeded. “You won them? How?”

“Lucky draw at a travel website. Come on, Sis. You’ve had a rough time of it. Let me help by sharing my good fortune.”

And so we found ourselves on a plane bound for Phoenicia, and a week’s vacation.

It was everything Amy’d promised. By day we enjoyed the resort, and every night was a different party. The trip was more fun than I had in years.

Toward the end of our time in paradise, I lay in a seaside bungalow, getting the most amazing massage when Amy appeared. Her hair was currently blond, with pink and blue bangs; the look totally at odds with her now golden tan. “Um, Courtney?”

I couldn’t actually form words, but I groaned in response.

“Don’t be mad, but we, uh… we have to go meet with someone.”

I raised my head just enough to give Amy an arch look. “Who?”

A voice I didn’t recognize answered. “Your benefactor, Ms. Jones.”

I looked up and past Amy. The woman who stood there had long red hair. I don’t mean her hair was orange, or copper, or strawberry blond. I mean red. Blood red. Her perfectly tailored business suit probably cost more than everything I owned. Her quiet demeanor spoke of competence, and her eyes held not a shredded of compassion. She was a predator, this woman. I disliked her instantly. “And who is that?”

She didn’t even bat an eye. “Someone who detests waiting.”

I held her impassive gaze for a moment. “And, this person’s name?”

Amy winced. But one does not allow predators to establish dominance if one wants to stay off the menu.

The temperature seemed to drop several degrees as the woman leaned in close to look me in the eye.

“My employer asked me to bring you to him, Ms. Jones. I will do so. Out of courtesy, I allowed you time to get dressed.” she eyed my body. Aside from my bikini bottoms, I was stark naked. Hey, I’d been getting a massage.

The woman went on, “but if you’d prefer to continue our verbal sparring, the gentlemen outside will be happy to carry you to him as is...”

***

The water grew chill as I swam deeper, but already the thermal weave of my suit was working and after a moment, it felt no colder than a warm breeze.

This wasn’t my first tip to this skyscraper island, so the computer in my headset had a fairly decent map of the interior. I wriggled in through a shattered window and the computer displayed virtual details on my faceplate. It also began adding to the map with fresh scans.

I swam deeper into the structure. I’d done this a thousand times before, so it should be easy enough. But I couldn’t shake a feeling of trepidation. The feeling of prey being stalked.

Something I’d only felt once before…

Amy and I were ushered into an empty conference room somewhere in New Eden’s primary hotel. I tried to keep track of our route, but there were too many twists and turns.

A large oval-shaped oak table dominated the room, ringed with chairs upholstered in dark leather. The room didn’t have actual windows, but screens positioned along one wall projected images of a peaceful beach, to simulate the effect. They paneled the other walls in rich wood, carved in intricate patterns. Overall, the room screamed “I’ve got more money than God”.

A section of wall opened, and a man stepped out. He was maybe thirty, his eyes were sharp as razors and there was not a single dark hair out of place. He wore a suit very similar to the scary lady who’d brought us, except he moved with a serene confidence didn’t have to bother saying ‘I’m in charge.’

I don’t know about Amy, but I felt seriously out of place in my blue bikini, sarong skirt and flip-flops — at least I’d taken a moment to tie my top back on.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Ladies.” His voice exuded soft assurance as he took one chair and motioned us to others. Scary-predator Lady took up a position at his left hand. He smiled, but the gesture didn’t reach his eyes.

“Not a problem,” Ami replied. She eyed the woman behind him. “The invitation was hard to ignore.”

The man sighed and turned around. “I apologize if Ms. Raven gave you the wrong impression. This is a friendly meeting.”

Said the spider to the fly.

Amy was about to continue, but I put a gentle hand on her wrist, and she subsided. “Think nothing of it, Mister…?”

“Lloyd. Maxwell Lloyd.” he extended a hand, and we shook.

My mind reeled. Maxwell Lloyd was one of the richest people on the planet. The big shark, from a long list of line of corporate raiders.

“Truthfully, Ms. Jones, may I call you Courtney? Truthfully, Courtney, you’ve rediscovered something that my scientists have been trying to recreate for over a decade.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“The suit you found. It was the only prototype of a project the Nanogen company was developing prior to The Surge. It’s a nano-molecular system designed to support human life in any hazardous environment.”

Amy’s eyes went wide as saucers “The Magic Bikini?!”

Lloyd laughed. It was such a human sound, coming from a man who could buy half the world with his pocket change. “Is that what you call it? We’d wondered why it was in that… configuration.”

“You broke into my home!” I said, without thinking.

Lloyd looked embarrassed. “Unfortunately, we did. An enthusiastic employee,” he looked sharply at Raven, “took it upon themselves to re-acquire the prototype. We have all your missing belongings here and will gladly return them, as well as a very tangible apology to cover any damages or difficulties.”

Amy frowned. “All that aside, how did you know we had it?”

Lloyd shrugged. “I purchased Nanogen several years ago. Including all surviving resources, projects, everything. They designed the suit to make contact and send telemetry. When you activated it…”

I nodded. “You received a signal.”

“Yes.”

“So,” I began, folding my arms across my chest. “Other than the apology. Why are we here?”

“You got the to suit to reconfigure. Twice. My best minds can't even get it to activate. They think it's keyed to your DNA.”

Amy looked confused. “So, you want, what? Courtney for a guinea pig?”

Lloyd smiled “Nothing so risky, just a sample of her DNA.”

“How big a sample?” I asked.

“A vial or two of blood, nothing drastic. For which, I am prepared to compensate you, handsomely.”

I didn't trust him. Nothing about this sat right with me. I didn't buy his line about an over-enthusiastic employee breaking into my home, either.

But we were in an unknown environment, surrounded by who knows how much muscle, and in no position to negotiate.

“How much is, 'handsomely'?” I asked.

Lloyd flashed a truly soulless smile.

Within an hour, we struck the deal. They had a sample of my blood, and I had enough money to upgrade my equipment and fix up the Distant Horizon and move to a better mooring. The Case of the Magic Bikini was finally closed.

I hoped.

***

I felt something move behind me more than I saw it. Just a flashing shadow in the water. I whirled and looked, but there was nothing there.

Probably nothing. A large fish, or a wave distorting the surface refraction. The tight confines created by the urban reef could do lots of strange things to sunlight as it filtered from the surface. Yeah, that was it. Nothing.

I returned to the vault and resumed inputting the combination the client gave me. My nerves got the better of me, and I messed it up. Growling to myself, I began again, focusing on my work and blocking out everything else.

Then the goons grabbed me. Someone seized me by the scalp and bodily yanked me away from the vault.

My hands shot up to fight off whoever it was, and then I realized my attacker wasn't alone.

A second set of hands grasped my left arm and locked it in a tight bind. The second assailant snaked a leg around my left thigh and pinned it as well. The pressure on my scalp released, and that attacker mirrored their friend on my right side.

They held me fast, completely at their mercy. I fought like mad, but I had no leverage. The pair of goons knew their work. I'll grant them that.

A third figured joined us, swimming lazily down the hall. Their gear did nothing to hide the lushly feminine figure, but it was the blood red hair that held my gaze.

Raven.

She came to a halt just in front of us and smiled around her regulator. She tipped her head to one side, as if to say 'Oh my, what is this?'

I just glared back at her. If I had a hand free, I could have keyed my mask to allow me to speak to her, but not with my hands locked out away from like this.

Raven's eyes turned positively rapturous as she reached forward. She ran a single finger across my faceplate and down my cheek. She took a moment and swiped it right over where the fabric covered my lips.

Then her eyes flashed, and she reached up, trying to pry up the top seam of my face mask.

I freaked out. True, Nanobreathers bind tight to the skin of the person using them, but you can pry one off with sufficient force. I screamed and cursed as I fought desperately to free a limb, tried to gain some scrap of leverage, some glimmer of hope.

It felt like my face was being clawed off, but then, with tears streaming from my eyes, I felt a trickle of sea water along my brow.

And with a heave, it was off, and seawater flooded my face.

I'd managed half a deep breath before my air fled, but as I watched Raven toy idly with her prize, I knew I was going to die. I can hold my breath for a long, long time. My mom thinks I'm part fish. But here? Now?

Raven toyed with me, offering her regulator, but always keeping it just barely out of reach. I'm not ashamed to admit, tried for it once or twice.

My cheeks bulged out, fighting desperately to hold on to my air, which even now was staling in my lungs. The inner fire built and built as my abdomen pulsed with the need to exhale.

Raven leaned in close as I visibly weakened and gave me a brief wave, a little curl of her fingers as if to bid me adieu.

I glared pure hatred at her as finally I passed the break point. My air exploded out in a spasmodic cloud of bubbles. First once, then again, and on the third time it happened.

I breathed in a bit of water.

Coughing, I tried to choke it back out, but there was nothing. More and more icy death gurgled its way down my throat.

At some point, the goons let go. Huh, they were both female as well. Hadn't realized...

Through the darkening red haze, I saw Raven smile.

... then I died.