Summus Proelium

Here’s the first half of the new Patreon Snippets, with the other half coming next time!

What’s Going On With Dani Investigating Why Sierra Looks Like Cassidy?

Something was definitely up with that Cassidy Evans chick, Dani confirmed with herself as she watched the subject in question from across the school cafeteria. Not that it was anything like the cafeterias she was accustomed to. This place was more like a restaurant, and not the cheap family outing sort. She still couldn't believe these rich fuck spoiled shits were controlled enough not to carve up the fancy tables or stick gum under them. If even one of these things had passed within a hundred feet of the schools she was accustomed to attending, it would've had six different initials and curse words etched into it within a few minutes. And, come to think of it, probably would’ve had at least one leg broken or at least wobbly. But these guys left all of that alone.

Or maybe they did vandalize shit and the tables were just replaced every evening. They were all so rich she could absolutely see that being a thing. And, what was really sad was that if true, it still wouldn't even be close to the most wasteful thing she had seen these people do around here.

But she wasn't here to keep a running tally of how much money was wasted. That was just something going on in the back of her head. No, her true focus at the moment was on the aforementioned Cassidy Evans. The girl whom Sierra’s Biolem body had been created from.

Well, no, not girl and not chick. According to people around school, Cassidy Evans had recently begun to consider themself to be nonbinary. Or maybe fluid or something, she wasn't sure of the specifics. But the point was, not strictly a girl. Which, to be honest, it had made Dani even more suspicious of what might be going on. Had the original Cassidy been taken and replaced by a different Biolem, one who wasn't clear on the need to not do anything to draw attention to the change?

Yeah, maybe that was just a little too much paranoia. Just because Cassidy had changed pronouns and all that right around the time Dani had found out for certain that there was at least one Biolem body made to look like them wasn't exactly a smoking gun. Sometimes a coincidence was just a coincidence. Especially considering they had taken the one Cassidy body Dani was aware of. It wasn't impossible that there was another, but it was probably that paranoia thing.

No, there were plenty of other reasons to be suspicious about what was going on with Cassidy. They very clearly weren't just a typical rich kid, that much was obvious. In the time Dani had been observing them, she saw how much Cassidy looked around, how much attention they paid to their surroundings. They were seemingly hyper aware of everyone around them. They didn't just walk through school expecting everyone to get out of their way like some of these kids did. Which was ironic considering they were far and away the richest student here. Not that you'd be able to tell just by watching them interact with others. They were more polite than most.

But it went beyond simple politeness in this case. Their habit of watching their surroundings so much definitely wasn't just a case of not wanting to run into anyone. No, they were suspicious. The way their eyes darted around when getting near a crowd, the way they watched any quick movement within their line of sight, even at the edges of it, the way they held themselves, it was like they were constantly expecting some sort of attack. They were definitely on edge all the time.

To be honest, seeing all that made Dani angry, an anger she barely managed to suppress whenever she thought about it so the people around her wouldn't start asking what was wrong. She was supposed to blend in here (at least as much as someone like her could, a tricky thing as it was), and letting herself start talking to people about the richest, most powerful couple in the state potentially being abusive parents probably wasn't exactly the right way to do that.

Yes, though she had started out by trying to figure out if Cassidy Evans knew anything about why Pittman would make a Biolem copy of them, the more she observed them, the louder the voice in her head telling her that this person was being abused got. The signs were all there. They were hyper-aware of their surroundings, avoided getting too near big crowds if they could help it, constantly scanned everyone like they were assessing the potential threat, their defensive posture that was probably only apparent to others who had been in more than their share of fights, or even the way they jumped whenever there was a loud noise. Okay, anyone would jump in such situations, but it was that combined with everything else. And it was also the way they jumped. Dani couldn’t explain it, but Cassidy jumped like a person ready to defend themself, not the generic ‘oh crap’ sort of jump most people would have when someone dropped a lunch tray.

Or, again, maybe she was reading too much into it. At least as far as that went. But the rest made Dani pretty damn sure there was at least something going on there. Hell, even Cassidy being so polite to everyone made it seem like they didn't want to upset anybody. Putting all that together definitely made it seem like their parents might not be as loving as they appeared.

Of course, an added wrinkle to all that was the fact that their parents were a couple of those who had been affected by Sleeptalk. There were some who could have argued that if Cassidy was being abused, they should have seemed better at this point rather than worse. They were definitely upset by their parents being in the hospital. But then again, sometimes abuse victims could have that sort of relationship. It was hard to say for certain. Besides, it was also possible the abuse didn't come from their parents in the first place. They had an older brother, after all. Actually, that made even more sense. If the older brother was the abusive one, then their parents being laid up wouldn’t make things better. It would make them worse. Much worse, potentially. Plus, wasn’t there a younger sister in the mix now? Could she become a target as well?

“Uhh, you okay there?” Polly, a slightly younger girl Dani knew from one of her new classes, asked while squinting at her. Or rather, down toward her hand. Looking that way, Dani blanched. Thinking about all that had made her so angry she had bent her fork in half with her thumb. Whoops. Quickly, she shook her head. “Sorry, just thinking about something else.” Part of her had briefly thought about coming up with something more specific, but in her experience, that sort of lie worked better when you were vague. Coming up with a full story just sounded rehearsed. Besides, it wasn’t like Polly actually cared that much. “I’ll grab a new one.”

Before she could stand up, however, Polly immediately extended a fresh fork that way. “You can have mine. Don’t worry, I had tacos so I didn’t even touch it. I mean, except for how I’m touching it right now. But that’s on the handle and everything, so you don’t have to worry about me getting germs all over the eating part that goes in your mouth or--and--I mean--I’m overexplaining.”

Oookay, maybe she would care. Turning her attention away from Cassidy, Dani focused that way. Polly was a slight blonde girl, somewhat nerdy-looking but still cute. Was--did--wait did Polly like her? Was that why she was being so weird and babbling like that? Because that definitely didn’t sound like a bored rich girl just being formally polite to the new student or whatever.

With that thought in mind, Dani took the offered fork and smiled a little weakly. She wasn't sure how to react to something like that. Being ignored, dismissed, or even looked down on, sure. But some rich girl liking her in that way? She had no idea what to do with that. Especially not now that she had an actual girlfriend. Amber was around here somewhere. They were supposed to meet up later to hang out and… well, talk about a few things. And do some not talking stuff as well. Thinking about that made her blush.

Still, Dani gave a quiet thanks. Then she started talking to Polly about other things, distracting herself. It really wouldn’t be good if anyone noticed her constantly staring at Cassidy Evans, especially if someone told them about it. That would just complicate everything too much.

But she didn’t forget about that thought she’d had. If Cassidy’s brother--Simon, that was his name. If Simon Evans was--wait a minute. Hold on just a minute. What if… oh shit, there had been a Cassidy Biolem that wasn’t being used, but who said that was the only one? What if there was a Simon Evans Biolem and the real guy had already been replaced? What if that one was what had Cassidy themself so upset and on edge all the time, especially now that their parents were sick? What if Cassidy either suspected something was wrong with their brother or knew for certain, and the Biolem was making her keep quiet about it? They might know the truth, or just know that their brother was very different now, even dangerous. What if they had--

Polly was saying something, and Dani quickly tore her attention away from all… that. Now clearly wasn't the time to let herself be distracted. But it made sense. Of course there would be a Simon Biolem if there was a Cassidy one, right? And since they apparently hadn't found one in the same place as Sierra's new body, maybe it was already in use.

But, finally, Dani managed to stop focusing so much on the Evans. Mostly because Polly was talking about some new comic book series she’d started reading, and showing off one of the issues. Which--yeah, it actually sounded cool, and the art was great. It was a science fiction sort of thing, alternate reality Earth with weaponized blimps and shit.

Once lunch was over and she had visited her locker for the next set of books (which Polly had accompanied her for while continuing to talk about the main characters from that comic), Dani hung around with the other girl. She was still trying to work out the best way of saying, ‘hey you’re cool but I sort of have a girlfriend and also I’m really busy trying to figure out if the richest kid in school is being actively abused or just had their brother replaced by a cyborg.’

In the end, she settled on just telling Polly she would probably check it out. Which resulted in the girl shoving the entire first graphic novel collection in her arms before running off like her pants were on fire.

Uhhh…. yeah, she was definitely going to have to do something about that. God, if only everything could be about robbing banks, stealing cars, and solving cyborg-related rich kid mysteries? But no, they had to have awkward shit like this too. Heeeeey, maybe Polly was a Biolem…

Yeah, probably not.

********

The Truth About Yellowbrick

With a heavy sigh, Simon Evans walked back out of the office building he had just been visiting and took a seat in Royal Thunder, the blue, 1971 Plymouth Hemi Barracuda that was both his Dad’s favorite car and Cassidy’s. And with good reason, considering the thing was worth about four hundred thousand dollars. Not the most expensive car in their garage, by a long shot. But damn was it pretty.

And yet, Simon would give away all of them if it would make his parents wake up. Whatever, the money was worthless without them. He didn’t care about that. He just wanted his family back together, and for all this shit to calm down. There was so much fighting going on in the city, the Ministry was barely able to keep things from completely falling apart. Even then, Simon was pretty sure the gangs were starting to realize the Ministry wasn’t at full strength. And if they pushed too hard--

No, they still had plenty of ways to keep those people in line. As they had just shown with that shit at the school the night before. Z had done her job, not only in handling at the situation, but doing so in a way that made it clear that the Ministry was not to be fucked with. There was probably a better way of disguising the holes Paintball had left in those walls, and the missing security footage, once everything else was cleaned up, but to be honest Simon had just been tired by that point. So he simply had the people they brought in make it look like some kids broke in and vandalized the place before stealing test answers. Whatever, it wasn’t like the cops would be trying too hard to figure it out. Especially since the cops assigned to the case worked for the Ministry. That tended to make those sorts of things much easier to cover up.

Shaking off those thoughts, as well as the ones revolving around the argument he just had with the people in that building over how much they owed in taxes, Simon started the car. His eyes closed as he smiled at the purr of the engine. It was like a resting but still very dangerous lion, one that could roar to life with a slight tap from his foot. So, so very exhilarating. No wonder Cassidy liked this car so much. And she didn’t even know half of what it was capable of.

“Okay, Yellowbrick,” he announced out loud, “I promised you we'd take a little ride today, so let's do that. You seriously earned it after all that extra work you've been putting in. Maybe we can even pick you up a present or two. I’ve got a few ideas.” With that, he hit the gas and accelerated away from the building as that lion engine bellowed its delight at being put to good use. The power in this car, the sheer strength and freedom it offered, made Simon forget everything else, all his other responsibilities, for a minute. He let himself lean back in the seat and relax, almost reaching out to turn the music up so he could really zone out before coughing. “Aww shit, you’d probably like to experience this a little better, huh? Hang on.”

Coming to a stop at the next red light, Simon reached out to open the glovebox before taking something out. “Here we go, babe. Let me get you plugged in.”

Most of the exterior of Royal Thunder was built the way it had been back in the day, so it would look identical to when it had rolled off the assembly line. But there were some improvements under the hood, literally and figuratively. The car had been converted to a hybrid, so it didn't use nearly as much gasoline. It also had a high-tech navigation system, stereo, computer assisted this and that, whatever. The point was, there was a computer in there, which came to life with a cheerful ping as soon as Simon took the cord from the thing in his hand and plugged it into the console. “Gotcha, you all set? Got the connection?”

From the thing in his hand, a female voice announced, “You’re damn straight I’m connected! Check it out.” The radio station changed, volume rising, before the GPS changed the route on the console screen to look like a hand giving the devil horns. “Now that’s a connection! But you know I don’t need to be plugged in to use the computer here, not with Wi-Fi and the password.”

“Yeah, yeah, you’re hot shit, I know.” Snorting despite himself, Simon set the thing down. “But you said yourself having a physical connection helps you feel the thing you’re in, right?”

“Right,” came that same easy, smooth female voice. It sounded like one of Cassidy’s skater friends. “And I do enjoy feeling things.”

Chuckling, Simon watched the traffic lights start to shift. “Right, joyride time. You might be able to send anyone anywhere in the world as long as there’s a door, but this… this is the real way to travel.”

Grinning to himself as the music was cranked by his enthusiastic companion, he hit the gas once more and they roared away from the stoplight the instant it changed to green. His other hand, the one not gripping the wheel, set the object down in the slot right there under the console. It was a small thing, totally unassuming in the grand scheme of things, and something that wouldn’t stand out to anyone who didn’t know what they were looking at as anything more than a faint curiosity, practically a relic of a bygone age.

“Okay, Yellowbrick,” Simon announced slyly, “let’s see what this baby can do.”

The engine roared, as the car went screaming down the road. All for the enjoyment of two individuals. One was a twenty-year-old boy. The other was a Touched Object, a once-inanimate thing that had found itself--or rather, herself empowered and given both sapience and powers by one of the Summus Proelium orbs. Powers which included creating those connections through doorways as well as an endless power supply that meant she never had to be recharged. Which had been a relief for her, considering how often Simon’s dad had forgotten to charge her back before she gained sapience. But at least now she could have yelled at him about it.

She, in this case, was a small, ordinary-looking yellow Nokia phone from all the way back in the late nineties. Sterling Evans’ phone from those old days.

The type that were so durable that they were commonly known as bricks.