Red Entaries

Four

One day later. Driving towards Lunar Life Corp, a four-minute drive east from Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, New York City region, Brooklyn; also called Solar City. It was 5:36 am. as the dark heavens covered the sun, and the city was lit like a thousand stars. Joanna Brown was speeding under its bright complexity in an unmarked FBI vehicle. Her hover car, like the others, shifted through urban streets, stopping and noticing how lights contrasted the city skyline. When she was about to leave Staten Island; high-rise solar-paneled buildings littered with owned vacancies vanished—crossing the one thousand two hundred ninety-eight-meter bridge. She sorted her thoughts, passing over the dark blue, especially as hundreds of beaming vehicles slowed her approach.

She saw a flashing streak through the dark atmosphere. A spaceship, Joanna thought. Only a few of such caliber were built to reach an asteroid in a short time. These spaceships exported precious minerals while many other versions were solar orbiters or transmogrifying robots transforming the International Space Station to become the Hollowed Eagle, the first freighter of the Solar Space Fleet.

The Hollowed Eagle's exciting— but at times dreadful—once a month journey to the Moon landed in a meteor shower, but eventually brought about a colony of successfully sustained human life. The other four freighters still in the works were for the colonization of Mars, Mercury, and an orbital Venus space station while they dug a colony into the saffron crust of the gas giant Jupiter's Moon. These soon to be built freighters would not just be a storehouse for the needs of settlers but also saved terran workers from the breakouts of Earthly contagion, glacial flooding, and space junk. Designed with self-sufficient machinery and applicable as a first class space station, these prototype vessels would come with a supercomputer for self maintenance and guardian to the precious sentient beings aboard.

The International Space Station had its own glory before evolving by necessity to become the legendary space freighter, where its need for mass import-exports was most valuable. This once orbital city, the size of five city square blocks, led to immense amounts of solar energy, which also at times supported colony elevators ridden for tourist activities.

Before the sky was torched into a light blue, Joanna wouldn't reach her destination quickly as planned. Traffic was tight until she neared the bridge's arch. As before, vehicles were picnicking in their own leisure time, or was it the slow gray pick-up some waved at?

When traffic opened up, Joanna came under the high-rise beams with breezy winds shortened over her windshield. Not forgiving a crowded toll booth, she was pleased to clear the east-side suspended pillar. Then soon after reaching the highway, there was a short time between her destination.

At 6:25 am. it would be daybreak, which gave Joanne plenty of time. She wasn't the kind of person to be late. As she drove in the uniform of traffic lights, the evergreen trees grew into the background, two Brooklyn parks on either side as she sped through. Now a short way down was Dahlgren Plaza Road, a block and a half from her target. She crossed an intersection and over-sighted to her right on Ninety-second Street where a throng protested.

The fiery protesters camped there many nights, Joanna thought. The protesters are on strike against Lunar Life Corp and have signs up that say they lost their jobs to machines and they won't stop until they have their jobs back.

Chaos stirred about the news of First Reach's colony, when Earth developed a marvelous citadel beyond known capabilities. Some thought it was robot craft, especially the many protesters that lost their jobs. In this heavily financed project homeless citizens gave rise to government protests.

Machine kind superseded work opportunities. Unskilled labor forces were forced to re-educate and learn to repair the refurbished robots who replaced them which gave rise to more illegal activity. Many of the most vile criminals found a home in Shanghai: A utopia, not where the land was fruitful with good morals and kind gestures, but fallen in the underground shadows and ill manners, the kind of land where crime was second hand and law found no order but chaos programmed everything was free.

The clandestine Gangsters eluded authorities for more than a decade, and still do. Hoodlums from Shanghai were traffickers at most, but also a part of an extensive syndicate dealing in blackmail. Only one in two hundred who climbed the ladders of criminal activity would become elites, these were the high ranked most vile affiliates. The casinos, bars and brothels were chained with illegal activity as far as the border. Citizens would hire the Green Vipers for scare tactics and assassination hits. In return they received more than just compensation, but a stake in the blackmailing operation as well. It was all amid the high rise solar paneled buildings and white picket fences of rural suburbs. It was not a safe haven; it was quite not indeed.

Street Slugs have been smuggling guns from all around the world. A gang that has a fancy to steal valuable goods while on the job. Hence, this is where The Harbinger's last enterprise to blackmail interlopes:

The crime-lord's informant (Peach) suggested hiring a gambler born in Canberra, Clifford Clayworth.

"He's not the young gentleman he once used to be, or so they say, and he ran with Lunar Life Corp, but to date, he's now in cahoots with us, the Mob."

This casino affiliate saw to it he could get the two Mobster informants for himself as wives. Cliff impressively explained how, even amidst cracking a corner shot behind the back. It was to the dismay of Clifford, the pool stick tapering patron who lost the game; but the pleasure of the Gangster leader hit-man. Applauding politely, Cliff listened to his plan, not to mock the complexity of blackmailing one of the three with a greater right to the chairman seat than himself, he wished! But consoling, how the Mob would get the job done neat and quick, no strings attached, and trust was a golden rule. The Gangster's Boss reluctantly agreed to Cliff's plan of having the best of the best, el feminine fatal, to steal Trevor Trahern's heart. Clayworth assured The Harbinger it was the only way to blackmail Trevor.

"This must be some lass!" Cliff exclaimed. "If she could seduce Trevor, a devout catholic, and ruin his reputation." Clifford continued a moment to contemplate his thoughts with a deep sigh. "Coward he's not, you'll need more than the armed forces to make him pay-up." But this was a last resort for The Harbinger, or the long runner, for it required Joanna to earn Trevor's trust, although in the meantime the crime lord was faithful he could get Trevor backed into a corner, certainly, like four other companies being blackmailed.

The Harbinger was now ready to unload his torture chamber to examine the many possible tools and get the dia he wanted out of Trevor.

From now until his reign the Harbinger held this job in high esteem, the last job in his many years, then he would step down looking for a successor; a superior agent and one devious as himself. Joanne was unaware she would, one day, have a chance to replace him, but now she could only think of how chairman Trevor Trahern stood between her chance on a higher step of the criminal hierarchy. The further the White Viper rose the more pleased she was.