Chapter 21: Ashes
Slave to Memory [22 of 44] - In the shadow of Company control, one man’s newfound freedom sparks a desperate race against time to save the woman who liberated him.
In the darkness, vulnerability wrapped around him like a tight embrace, leaving him to face an unfamiliar solitude he’d never imagined encountering again.
No one answered when he called out.
The voices outside weren’t for him, and they didn’t care that he sat there.
“Hello?” he tried—one word added to a lurid stream of curses and shouts as the crowds confusion gave way to anger.
Outside, the sparks and smoke had died down to silence and the faint, acrid reek of wrecked electronics. The background hum of a digital life was gone, silenced like jungle fauna sensing an approaching predator.
Usually, that predator was him—or Them. In the darkness of the shack, he felt alone for the first time in years. The silence in his mind stilled him.
My Overseer is gone.
The machine mind that had logged his every thought, every deviation from his indentured life as a Seeker— was excised from his mind. No more doublethink, thoughts hidden within thoughts. None of that.
No more.
It was just gone. He stood on shaky legs, muscles protesting against the dead weight of his exo and stumbled to the door.
As his hand grasped the handle, a thought struck him “She did this. Somehow, she freed me.”
A mixture of gratitude and disbelief overpowered his initial fear.
He felt a wave rise within him—warmth—his skin prickling, the hair on his arms and scalp standing on end.
He was singular. No longer a plural mind in a forced Bond. His corporate contract was moot. She had given him back his personhood.
And they were going to kill her.
The warmth became an icy dread, the concrete knowledge landing in his stomach: They would never allow this. The corporation’s steel-toed jackboot would come crashing down on her neck and snuff her out.
He stood on the landing, the bright sunlight turning everything into harsh silhouettes. For a heartbeat, the world became simple—black and white.
He had to find their primary target first.
Omni. Her name was Omni.
The name came from his own memory, not an overlaid feed supplied by his AI handler.
The sensation was odd.
As his eyes adjusted, greys flooded back into the world, and doubt squelched out hope. Without his connection, how would he find her? He couldn’t even check the weather, let alone run a net traffic scan.
He looked up. The sky was blue, the sun overhead, and already the heat in the Stacks was rising. Shadows were short, off to his right. He could just make out a wide band of dead equipment.
People poked and prodded antennas, kicked satellite dishes. They argued with their neighbors and ranted about lost solar panels. Inside dwellings, people lamented failed cookers and displays. Any connected device in an unprotected outlet was toast.
He could, if he considered himself the target, look at the signs and follow the damage straight to her.
Again, joy was doused with cold water.
So could they.
He hurried, hobbling downstairs two at a time, ignoring his angry joints. She didn’t have time to lose.
Following a straight line through the twisting Stacks was no simple task, but eventually, he found her door. The epicenter.
Gazing around, he could see the confused and angry Stack rats, people standing right here and missing the source of all their frustration. But to someone trained to find people, he could see it clearly, even unaided.
His hand stopped above the cracked wood of the door. He heard voices.
“Dad, I don’t know what happened,” a woman yelled.
“Don’t yell at me in my house!”
“Let’s try to stay calm—use our heads. Work together. This will be investigated.”
The first man’s voice became muffled.
“You! You’re the reason for all this,” he accused, his voice strained. “We kept our heads down, did our work, stayed invisible. But ever since you showed up, our lives turned upside down.”
“That’s not true,” the woman replied, her voice sharp—Omni, maybe.
He stood with his hand still frozen in the air. “What am I doing?”
He looked down at the blue letters on his chest, the corporate logo tattooed into his flesh. Branded as property. His fist fell, and he knocked on the door firmly.
It swung open a second later. “What do you want?”
It was her.
“Omnia Davids, I’ve not raised you to be so rude.” The older man appeared next to her, but his face creased when he laid eyes on him. His gaze paused on his tattoo.
“We’ve no business with corporate,” the man said, then calmed himself. “Now I’m being rude. How can I help you, sir?”
Omni’s eyes widened. Her mouth moved, but no words came out. Her hands began to shake, and she stepped back. Her father glanced toward her, confusion creeping onto his face.
This wasn’t going well.
A bald Black man appeared behind them, rage flashing across his face.
The man reacted immediately, slamming into him. Grabbing his lapels, he pushed him through the rotten wooden railing.
For a moment, they were weightless. All Ash saw was hate.
The ground slammed into his back, the impact forcing the wind out of him. He couldn’t speak. He couldn’t breathe. The man landed heavily on top of him and rolled to the side, clutching his ribs and cursing.
As Ash struggled for air, the man staggered up, swaying, his fists raised. Stars danced in Ash’s vision—once, twice— then he blacked out.
When Ash came to, the pain in his ribs burned as if someone had taken a red-hot poker to his side. He struggled for breath as he watched the others yelling, their voices fragmented over the pounding in his head.
Omni and her father wrestled with the Black man—Murph, that was his name. Ash remembered that much. Murph jerked his arms free with a snarl.
“I don’t trust him,” Murph growled, pointing at Ash. “He’s corporate. He doesn’t deserve to breathe.”
Omni turned toward Ash, hesitating as her gaze met his. Ash pushed himself upright with a wince, summoning strength he didn’t feel. “They’re coming for you,” he croaked.
“Who?” Omni asked, fear creeping into her voice.
“BN Security.”
Murph snorted. “He’s lying. This is a trap.”
“I’m Severed.” Ash looked at her, willing her to believe. “She burned my Overseer out. My implant’s gone. Never seen an Override—”
“Get to the point!” Murph snapped.
“Murph,” Omni’s father interrupted, placing a steady hand on his shoulder. “Let him speak.”
Ash took a labored breath, fixing his gaze on Omni. “They’ll brand you terrorists. They’ll call in an army to ‘pacify’ the Stacks. The collateral damage will be massive. You can’t stay here.”
“Why should we trust you?” Murph sneered. “You tried to kill her last week.”
“I know them. I know their tactics. I can help you.” Ash paused, turning to Omni. “Please… I owe you my freedom.”
Omni’s father pulled out a battered tablet, scanning a news feed. His face darkened as he passed it to her. “It’s already happening.”
The screen displayed Herman Shaw, his voice dripping with manufactured rage. “Domestic terrorists,” he said. “Rest assured, we will restore order.”
A loud bang echoed nearby, followed by a chilling siren.
“They’re here,” Ash said.