Cinder

19 - Reflections

THE EMERALD STRETCH, LUMA

"Alright, we've been cleared for landing. You sure you remember your cover?"

"My memory is literally a database, of course I remember!"

Tobias sighed as he eased up on the stick to bring them in for a gentler descent. "Sorry. You can never be too careful, especially in a place like this."

He gave her another quick scan to ensure that her clothing was in place, a small padded jacket with a hood and cargo pants to cover up as much of her as possible. He himself was wearing some of the same pants and a form-fitting sweatshirt.

He'd chosen their outfits for use, sure; he definitely wanted to be able to maneuver well if they entered combat. But camouflage was a must as well; if they were going to pull this off, they'd need to blend in and look like they belonged here, and that was going to be hard enough with Kay's body surely attracting unwanted attention if people were to see her.

"It's Luma," she scoffed, "I don't remember security being one of their priorities."

He cast a sideways glance at her. "Maybe the more intellectual parts of you are with one of the other personas, because you should know better than to assume that. And it's not just any part of Luma- it's the Emerald Stretch."

"Forgive my ignorance, but I don't understand the significance."

"It's one of the few places on Luma left that's not completely covered by cities and buildings," he explained. "As such, it's a pretty desirable location. A lot of the wealthier people who lived here wanted to keep it that way, and so they made pacts in the past with the government to allow them facilities for whatever they wanted. In exchange, any nature within a certain radius of the stretch is protected and off-limits to construction."

Kay hummed in thought. "Greenery must be a pretty well sought-after sight here on Luma, huh?"

"I'd imagine that staring at nothing but buildings all the time would take its toll on someone, yeah. But higher security is a side effect here. They may not necessarily be in league with New Humanity, but it doesn't hurt to be careful."

They passed the next few seconds in silence until the muffled thump of the landing gear making contact with the ground caused them to look at each other.

"Alright," he breathed with a tinge of nervousness in his voice, "showtime. Grab the gear, and follow my lead."

A few moments later, the two of them stood on the ramp as it lowered to allow them to disembark. He walked down first, moving to greet the officer presiding over the landing pad. The woman scrutinized a data pad in her hand to confirm his identity.

"Are you Ignacio Ardor?"

He nodded. "Yes, that's me."

At the sound of metallic footsteps, her gaze wandered over to the ramp where her eyes found Kay and then opened widely in surprise. "Uh, and what-?"

"This is Ava de Ferrers, Simulacrum. She's with me."

'Ava' waved one of her hands at the officer while the other continued to hold the storage crate in her arms. "Pleasure to meet you."

The woman analyzed her up and down. "Never seen a Simulacrum like that before."

"I've got friends in high places," she answered vaguely.

She looked back at the data pad, an expression of surprise beginning to bloom across her face. "I've never heard of you, yet your ID has security clearance for the Emerald Stretch?" She raised an eyebrow at Tobias inquisitively. "Mind filling me in on that particular ... anomaly?"