Page 53 of Jump or Fall
“Is Naxos a good place? Or am I just changing scenery?” He glanced at the server again.
“A man who looks like me is the Secretary of Security. In Teichus, I would be wallowing in the Outskirts. It would be a crime to mutilate a person to start. You decide.”
“But you sent someone to use people like lab rats in Teichus.”
Inu blinked slowly, his false eyes fixed on him. “You’re going to need to elaborate on that accusation.”
“Someone’s been selling a deadly scar-healing serum to people in Eight. The enforcers were able to confiscate a robotic bird.” Gordon glanced at the dogs sitting in a perfect row near the bar entrance. “I read that Naxos is trying to improve medi-spray. Now, what could be a possible improvement, and where is there an abundance of desperate people to test on?”
Inu took another sip of his drink and withdrew a tablet from his pocket.
“Rylan Gifford is the man you’re looking for. He was employed by Ascleon Therapeutics’s competitor, Shimohira. Their medi-spray goes by the name ‘Mend’, but you’ve probably never seen it in Teichus. Gifford was tasked with creating a scar serum and was caught conducting human trials before approval. He ran before we could prosecute.”
He showed Gordon a photo of a man with long brown hair tied back. He appeared to be in his fifties, with a wide nose and narrow jaw. Next to the picture was the warrant information.
Wanted
Rylan K. Gifford
Crimes:16 counts of Unauthorized Human Experimentation, 14 counts of Failure to Obtain Informed Consent, 5 counts of Assault, 2 counts of Attempted Murder
“Send this to your enforcer friends—prosecute as you will. Typically, we would request extradition, but Teichus is a special beast.”
“Are they still trying to create something to heal scars?” Maybe he could look normal again someday.
“Yes, but it’s tricky. Knight has been trying to chip away at Shimohira with petty lawsuits. As I’m sure you’ve realized, he has a vested interest in keeping scars permanent.”
Gordon took a sip of his smelter. The odd flavor was starting to grow on him and he enjoyed the dry heat of it.
“I don’t want to go back,” Gordon said pointedly.
Inu looked at him for a moment, then inclined his head. “It’s understandable that you want to enjoy some time in freedom.” He slid a card across the table. “Call if you change your mind.” He slid a second over. “Call this one to locate work and housing. We have special programs for transplants.”
Gordon bristled. Transplants or refugees?
Does it matter?
Inu stood and tapped the table. “Your drink and room are on me tonight.”
He swept out of the bar with his dogs, leaving Gordon to stew in his thoughts. He checked his tablet and found a signal.
He tried to send Kimmie a message, but it was blocked on her end. After a few minutes of setting up a fake Teichus address, he sent her the information.
Now his debt was clear, and he could focus on starting over.
***
He didn’t know where to go. Naxos was just as shitty as Teichus, and he wasn’t willing to take a chance on another place that might be the same.
Spy animals were everywhere. It was to the point he’d begun assuming every squirrel and bird was fake, locking eyes with them just in case. Surveillance back home was excessive, but here they took it even further.
He had found a job in IT at the smelting facility. The job itself was fine, but the people weren’t. As soon as they learned he was from Teichus, they’d assumed he got the job through a handout. It didn’t matter how good he was; they treated him like he was backwards and slow.
How could they not? Information in Naxos was everywhere—maps, documentaries, news from across the world—and the gaps in his knowledge made him an easy target. His coworkers turned it into a game, bombarding him with questions and placing bets on whether he would know the answers.
How was he supposed to know all of it? How could he know what he didn’t know, so he could study it and not look like a dumbass?
I can’t go back.
